Oh... we are about to have our hands full if they weren't already!! Elizabeth has just started to cruise efficiently this last week.
Elizabeth cruising at 10 months old from Nathan Marvelle on Vimeo.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
How I find recipes to try
Going with the idea that my food should look tasty, I have taken to looking at Google images to find the recipes that I want to cook. I spot a picture that looks good - then go to the website to see if the recipe is doable. Another website I've stumbled upon is called Taste Spotting. I love the pictures! I've used this to find a recipe for savory bread pudding with swiss chard and sweet potatoes... Just type in the item that you have and up comes a bunch of pictures with links to recipes. Yummy!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Babies of the 80's
My mom saved a few of my outfits from when I was a baby, and when I get bored I dress Elizabeth up in them and take her picture.
Most of the outfits are completely unpractical - for instance the pink sleeper only has buttons up the back with no access to the legs and diaper region. I can only imagine that being a very unplesant and time consuming middle of the night for my mom. However, the design of the little greenish/blue onesey should be duplicated for modern times. The flap that goes around her bottom comes up and snaps on her belly. There are multiple places you can snap it meaning she can wear as she gets longer. Unfortunately, it is not the cutest of the bunch, so she doesn't wear it too often. The top outfit makes her look like she should be out on the prairie. I just love that hat. But she didn't - I have several pictures of her trying to take it off, however it is a good design and she couldn't get it to budge!
We have a few more outfits to get her into and I'll make sure to take a photo. Good thing they are baby outfits, because I can just hear her now saying "mom this is ridiculous!" I have to admit they are pretty ridiculous, but they're pretty darn cute too!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Cooking...
"Sun" dried tomatoes
We sliced up some tomatoes and baked them on a cookie cooling rack at 250* for ~ 3 hours. This produced shriveled little tomatoes that tasted amazing - as if we had doused them in some kind of dressing. Our inspiration came from this recipe.
While I am really looking forward to fall taking hold here (why is it still mid 90s today?), I am not looking forward to the end of tomato season.
We sliced up some tomatoes and baked them on a cookie cooling rack at 250* for ~ 3 hours. This produced shriveled little tomatoes that tasted amazing - as if we had doused them in some kind of dressing. Our inspiration came from this recipe.
While I am really looking forward to fall taking hold here (why is it still mid 90s today?), I am not looking forward to the end of tomato season.
Growth chart idea
I have been looking for ideas for a growth chart for Elizabeth. I want to record her height on something for a visual of how fast she is growing, but knowing that we are not going to be in this house forever I wanted something that we could take with us. I also didn't want something too gaudy or too cutsey that would not be appropriate for when she gets older. After doing a thorough internet search I came upon this.
I bought a 6 foot board from home depot and painted it white. I plan on recording her height with a line date and then close to here birthday every year have her put her hand print in alternating colors. It fits all my criteria; I just love this idea!
I bought a 6 foot board from home depot and painted it white. I plan on recording her height with a line date and then close to here birthday every year have her put her hand print in alternating colors. It fits all my criteria; I just love this idea!
Nine months old
Today Elizabeth had her nine month appointment with Dr. Salter. She weighed in at an even 18lbs and she is 26.5 inches tall. She is hugging the 25th percentile curve for all her measurements.
From what we can tell and from what the doctor said, she seems to be developing right on track. She is pulling up on everything and crawls like a champ. She has 3 teeth - all on the bottom. And she is still a very happy baby. Well, except when she doesn't get her way... she hates having her diaper changed, not eating what we are eating, having things taken away from her (especially things that she should not have like the dog's water bowl or paper that will inevitably go right in her mouth), and initially being put in her car seat. She doesn't have stranger anxiety which we have read could kick in during this month. We are hoping that it never does. She is still a great sleeper but her bed time is creeping earlier and earlier. We would prefer to have her go to bed a little later so we could go out and do things, but these days she prefers to go to bed around 8:15, and we will probably be pushing that more towards 8 in the next few weeks as she is getting grumpy during those last 15 minutes if we are not doing something to entertain her. I remember when she used to go to bed at 10:30 and we asked the doctor when she would start going to bed earlier. Now we know. She still takes 2 to 3 naps during the day at 45min to 1.5 hours each.
All and all she is great!
Monday, August 16, 2010
Cooking...
Tomato Jam
Inspired by the wealth of fresh tomatoes that we had (some of which were cracking and needed to be used immediately), I looked up recipes for tomato jam and decided to make this one from the New York Times.
5-8 coarsely chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 jalapeño or other peppers, stemmed, seeded and minced, or red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste (which I left out because I didn't see it in the recipe... but I'm glad I did because what we got was really sweet and tasty. Maybe next time I'll try with a little spice).
1. Combine all ingredients in a heavy medium saucepan, Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.
2. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until mixture has consistency of thick jam. Since we did not core and get out the juice it took about 4-5 hours of simmering and occasionally stirring for ours to cook down to be thick enough. It was so worth it though!
3. Taste and adjust seasoning, then cool and refrigerate until ready to use; this will keep at least a week.
The final product is one that will make all the saliva glands in your mouth work overtime. It hits sweet and savory notes that make this little gem one that will become a staple if I ever have too many tomatoes (and really no one can EVER have too many tomatoes!)
Not knowing what to do with our jam other than salivate over it and sneak bites directly off of a spoon out of the jar, I did a little internet searching and found these ideas for ways to use the jam:
Slather it on warm cornbread or biscuits (Check!)
Use it as a condiment on sandwiches--roast beef on ciabatta, turkey breast with roasted sweet onions on toasted sourdough, smoked pulled pork with on a roll. (Check!)
Spread it on a toasted garlic bagel with cream cheese.
Mix it with softened cream cheese for a flavorful spread or unique party dip.
Thin it with a little sherry vinegar and use it as a glaze on chicken or fish.
Mix it with mayo for your secret "special sauce" on a hamburger. (umm not so much for me - what a waste!)
Fill crepes with tomato jam and goat cheese.
Use it in meatloaf in lieu of ketchup or BBQ sauce.
Inspired by the wealth of fresh tomatoes that we had (some of which were cracking and needed to be used immediately), I looked up recipes for tomato jam and decided to make this one from the New York Times.
5-8 coarsely chopped tomatoes
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 jalapeño or other peppers, stemmed, seeded and minced, or red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste (which I left out because I didn't see it in the recipe... but I'm glad I did because what we got was really sweet and tasty. Maybe next time I'll try with a little spice).
1. Combine all ingredients in a heavy medium saucepan, Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.
2. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until mixture has consistency of thick jam. Since we did not core and get out the juice it took about 4-5 hours of simmering and occasionally stirring for ours to cook down to be thick enough. It was so worth it though!
3. Taste and adjust seasoning, then cool and refrigerate until ready to use; this will keep at least a week.
The final product is one that will make all the saliva glands in your mouth work overtime. It hits sweet and savory notes that make this little gem one that will become a staple if I ever have too many tomatoes (and really no one can EVER have too many tomatoes!)
Not knowing what to do with our jam other than salivate over it and sneak bites directly off of a spoon out of the jar, I did a little internet searching and found these ideas for ways to use the jam:
Slather it on warm cornbread or biscuits (Check!)
Use it as a condiment on sandwiches--roast beef on ciabatta, turkey breast with roasted sweet onions on toasted sourdough, smoked pulled pork with on a roll. (Check!)
Spread it on a toasted garlic bagel with cream cheese.
Mix it with softened cream cheese for a flavorful spread or unique party dip.
Thin it with a little sherry vinegar and use it as a glaze on chicken or fish.
Mix it with mayo for your secret "special sauce" on a hamburger. (umm not so much for me - what a waste!)
Fill crepes with tomato jam and goat cheese.
Use it in meatloaf in lieu of ketchup or BBQ sauce.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Cooking...
Baba ghanoush
3 medium eggplant
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini
3 cloves garlic minced
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil to thin
Pierce each eggplant with a knife multiple times and place in a cast iron skillet in a 400 degree oven. Cook for ~40 minutes rotating so each side gets evenly roasted.
Remove from oven and cool (either in fridge overnight or in cold water).
Remove peel.
Place eggplant, lemon juice, tahini, and garlic in food processor and pulse till smooth. Add salt and pepper. Taste... add more if it seems like one ingredient is lacking. Add some olive oil and pulse again until the correct consistency.
3 medium eggplant
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini
3 cloves garlic minced
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil to thin
Pierce each eggplant with a knife multiple times and place in a cast iron skillet in a 400 degree oven. Cook for ~40 minutes rotating so each side gets evenly roasted.
Remove from oven and cool (either in fridge overnight or in cold water).
Remove peel.
Place eggplant, lemon juice, tahini, and garlic in food processor and pulse till smooth. Add salt and pepper. Taste... add more if it seems like one ingredient is lacking. Add some olive oil and pulse again until the correct consistency.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Cooking...
Stuffed Bell Peppers
One of our trips took us to Asheville where we raided my parent's garden and came home with TONS of produce! I have been making lots of things and probably should have been writing them down because they were good, and I can never remember what I did later since I always put together several recipes.
Here is what I remember of the recipe I made (note - I just added lots of things because we had them... it would probably be good without most of these ingredients. Measurements are estimates.)
2 cups uncooked rice
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup shredded summer squash
2 diced banana peppers
1 diced onion
4 jalapenos (seeded if they are too hot)
1lb ground beef
2 tomatoes
1/2 cup cilantro
4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin (more to taste)
1 cup spaghetti sauce (marinara)
3 egg whites
Salt
Pepper
1/2 cup crumbled feta
5-6 large bell peppers
* Cook rice in rice maker
* Saute carrots, squash, banana peppers, onion, 2 cloves garlic till soft
* In the meantime chop off tops of bell peppers and cut off the good part of the tops and throw in the saute. Remove ribs and seeds. Place in a oven safe casserole dish with some water and put in a preheated oven of 400 for 5-10 minutes.
* Add the ground beef to the sauteed veggies and cook until done.
* Make the fresh salsa - Dice the tomatoes, 2 jalapenos, cilantro, garlic, oregano, and cumin
* Add most of the rice (leave about 1/2-1 cup cooked rice to add if you feel like you need it) to the veggie - meat mixture.
* Add spaghetti sauce, egg whites, salt, pepper, feta, some extra cumin and oregano for taste, and 3/4 of the salsa mixture. If it is too watery or it looks like you need more rice... and the rice you set aside. If not keep it for something else.
* Spoon mix into peppers. Put the extra mix (there will be left over!) in a loaf pan. Put in oven for 25-30 minutes.
Enjoy! Elizabeth (she is now eating real food!), Nathan, and I sure did
One of our trips took us to Asheville where we raided my parent's garden and came home with TONS of produce! I have been making lots of things and probably should have been writing them down because they were good, and I can never remember what I did later since I always put together several recipes.
Here is what I remember of the recipe I made (note - I just added lots of things because we had them... it would probably be good without most of these ingredients. Measurements are estimates.)
2 cups uncooked rice
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup shredded summer squash
2 diced banana peppers
1 diced onion
4 jalapenos (seeded if they are too hot)
1lb ground beef
2 tomatoes
1/2 cup cilantro
4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin (more to taste)
1 cup spaghetti sauce (marinara)
3 egg whites
Salt
Pepper
1/2 cup crumbled feta
5-6 large bell peppers
* Cook rice in rice maker
* Saute carrots, squash, banana peppers, onion, 2 cloves garlic till soft
* In the meantime chop off tops of bell peppers and cut off the good part of the tops and throw in the saute. Remove ribs and seeds. Place in a oven safe casserole dish with some water and put in a preheated oven of 400 for 5-10 minutes.
* Add the ground beef to the sauteed veggies and cook until done.
* Make the fresh salsa - Dice the tomatoes, 2 jalapenos, cilantro, garlic, oregano, and cumin
* Add most of the rice (leave about 1/2-1 cup cooked rice to add if you feel like you need it) to the veggie - meat mixture.
* Add spaghetti sauce, egg whites, salt, pepper, feta, some extra cumin and oregano for taste, and 3/4 of the salsa mixture. If it is too watery or it looks like you need more rice... and the rice you set aside. If not keep it for something else.
* Spoon mix into peppers. Put the extra mix (there will be left over!) in a loaf pan. Put in oven for 25-30 minutes.
Enjoy! Elizabeth (she is now eating real food!), Nathan, and I sure did
Where have we been?
July and August have been busy months for the Marvelles! We have been non-stop traveling since July 4th... meaning lots to blog. Check back regularly while I try to update and record our fun filled summer.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Almost crawling?
Elizabeth has been getting up on her knees for a month now... but not a whole lot of forward progress that has looked anything like crawling. This last week she has started to move her hands and knees forward, but prefers to go a few "steps" then sit. She is pretty quick at getting across a room and we have started baby proofing.
Check out our latest video:
Almost Crawling from Nathan Marvelle on Vimeo.
Check out our latest video:
Almost Crawling from Nathan Marvelle on Vimeo.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Cooking...
Inspired by this recipe we cooked a
Swiss chard and potato gratin.
Our variation on the recipe:
10 new potatoes sliced thin in the food processor leave skin on
1 cup aged cheddar
1/2 lb swiss chard chopped in small pieces
1 tablespoon butter
dash of salt and pepper
1/2 cup milk
Preheat oven to 350.
Par boil the potatoes so they are almost the texture you'd like them in the gratin (this saved us so much time!). Spay a deep cooking bowl with non-stick spray. Layer 1/3 of the potatoes, 1/3 of the chard, and 1/3 of the cheese, 1/3 the butter cut in little pieces, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Do again twice making sure the top is cheese not swiss chard or else it will burn. Pour the milk down the edge. Bake in for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted and the chard has cooked to the right tenderness.
Swiss chard and potato gratin.
Our variation on the recipe:
10 new potatoes sliced thin in the food processor leave skin on
1 cup aged cheddar
1/2 lb swiss chard chopped in small pieces
1 tablespoon butter
dash of salt and pepper
1/2 cup milk
Preheat oven to 350.
Par boil the potatoes so they are almost the texture you'd like them in the gratin (this saved us so much time!). Spay a deep cooking bowl with non-stick spray. Layer 1/3 of the potatoes, 1/3 of the chard, and 1/3 of the cheese, 1/3 the butter cut in little pieces, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Do again twice making sure the top is cheese not swiss chard or else it will burn. Pour the milk down the edge. Bake in for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted and the chard has cooked to the right tenderness.
Cooking...
Cabbage and Apple Slaw
A very tasty and a good way to use our CSA pointed head cabbage
I used a combination of recipes and this is what I ended up with:
1 pointed head cabbage (~4 cups) shredded in the food processor
2 granny smith apples diced in small chunks
1/2 cup low-fat sour cream
1/2 cup plan fat-free yogurt
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Mix the dressing in a separate bowl. Combine with the cabbage and apples. Enjoy.
A very tasty and a good way to use our CSA pointed head cabbage
I used a combination of recipes and this is what I ended up with:
1 pointed head cabbage (~4 cups) shredded in the food processor
2 granny smith apples diced in small chunks
1/2 cup low-fat sour cream
1/2 cup plan fat-free yogurt
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Mix the dressing in a separate bowl. Combine with the cabbage and apples. Enjoy.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Cooking...
Yellow squash and zucchini rice casserole. What a great way to use all the squash we are getting from our CSA.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
The Grueling Triathlon of Doom
This morning I participated in my first triathlon. Before I injured my knee I have played with the idea of doing a triathlon. I had even looked into signing up for several, but never got the courage. Recently I've been working out pretty consistently and again started to think about doing a race again. Coincidentally, my friend Erin told me about this race, and even though I was past the registration date she was able to get me in. We met up this morning and were able to do it together.
The North Carolina summer did not disappoint - at 8am it was in the low 90's with sweltering humidity and the air was completely devoid of a breeze. Amazingly enough the weather wasn't too much of a factor. I might have been a little faster on my run if not for the sun beating down on me, but then again I had just finished swimming and biking so there is no way I would have been going very fast no matter what the weather. While the name sounds intimidating don't let it fool you; this triathlon is for the beginner triathalete. It is an actual super sprint distance. We started off at the downtown Y with a staggered start of 10 lengths of the pool, then transitioned in the parking lot and hopping on our bikes for a 6 mile ride down the American Tobacco trail, then back again to the Y parking lot to transition into the 1.5 mile run (more like slow slow jog for me).
The whole event was super fun, and I really hope to do another one soon!
Me finishing
Elizabeth's first hike
This afternoon we tried to find a heron rookery by Ellerbe Creek here in Durham, but were unsuccessful. I think they were hiding because it was too hot!
Elizabeth did great. She didn't mind the heat and even managed to briefly fall asleep in the Bjorn.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
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