Spontaneous Clapping

Bru Grill & Market

2012-01-27T08:47:00.000-08:00

We finally made it into Bru in Lake Forest!

Peanut had his first taste of lamb shank and a bite of these donut pops (sitting on fresh cotton candy).

For the full post come over to Eating the Orange!

Our playtime checklist for 2012

2012-01-25T00:00:00.000-08:00

It seems that sometimes I come across approximately one million things to do with the Peanut

and other days I completely draw a blank.

Orange County is packed with things to do. Every day. All kinds of things!

This year I've come up with 10 things that we would like to do as a family.

You noticed that I said I've come up with things we would like to do.

It's my job as a wife and mother to tell B the things that he really wants to do with us

but just didn't know it yet.

Find my list HERE, maybe we can plan a trip together!

#3 / 52 Food Adventures: Veggie Chips

2012-01-24T00:00:00.000-08:00

Although I never intended for this to be a challenge on cooking,

we just haven't tried anything new at the restaurants we've been to.

We've been focusing on using all the gorgeous fruits and veggies from our CSA.

We've now decided that we're going to try and made everything into chips.

Kale chips, which aren't pictured, are very popular in our house.

Everyone likes them, even the Peanut.

Although, I'm pretty sure Peanut likes them because

he thinks he's getting away with eating crunchy paper.

May I also say that I had to overcome my fear of the mandolin for this weeks adventure.

My mom broke out her fancy professional one and I concentrated hard on keeping all my fingertips and knuckles because, believe me, I've seen a lot of people lose both on this thing.

I tried beet chips and butternut squash chips and liked them both with a few adjustments.

The beet chips were really tasty. I think I would just use a oil spray on the cookie sheet and then a light spray over top instead of tossing in oil.

The butternut squash recipe was a little hit and miss but that was mainly because I sliced all of my squash too thin. I think next time I would do them thicker and maybe lower the temp a bit.

I thought I would try and get a pretty picture of my beet chips.

I took out all my bestest chips and stacked them up,
put a cutting board behind to eliminate all the background "noise"
and right as I picked up my camera it fell on my pretty posed chips.

WHACK!

Then I quickly brushed the crumbs into my hand and shoved them in my mouth.

What did you try this week?

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

2012-01-23T10:50:00.000-08:00

Happy Chinese New Year!

Today is the first day of the lunar new year and

this year marks the Year of the Dragon!

It's cold and rainy today and we don't have much planned

so we started off the day with a big breakfast, some cuddles on the couch and

a special book on Chinese New Year.

There are flaps, pop-ups, textures, scratch and sniff and lots of information given in the form of a fun story. Lenny and Lili and their family prepare for the new year by sweeping our the old year and welcoming the new,decorating with oranges and tangerines (that you can smell),

making long noodles and lots more.

My favorite is when the family sits to eat dim sum

and you can lift the flaps to see what they are eating!

Steamed Buns! Spare Ribs! Pork Dumplings!

I'm thinking about adding in the Chinese names for the food too.

Next year we'll plan for some decorations and celebrations.

Are you celebrating today?

Mia's Bee Birthday

2012-01-19T00:00:00.000-08:00

Miss Mia turned 1 year old in December but I haven't had the time to post about it until now.

So you've been missing out on this amazing party that her mama Joanne (and her husband Mike) put together.

You can imagine how excited I was to find out that it was a Bee theme.

Despite the fact that this particular day there were freakishly strong Santa Ana winds tearing through Orange County, the party was picture perfect and tons of fun.

The kids had little bumble bee snacks made from snack bags and painted clothespins.
There were antennas for all the little bees to wear as well.

This little bee was all over the place.
If Auntie Jen hadn't been there watching out I never would have been able to snap any pictures.

Is this not the cutest, most creative thing ever?
Yep, they put this together.

Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of any of the kids in it because I think Peanut was busy putting rocks and dirt in his mouth, but really, this is one of those ideas that will spread like wildfire.

Another amazing game they put together is the honeycomb hunt.

Each child was able to break through the honeycomb to grab their prizes.

I can only imagine how long they worked on creating all these things.

Of course I was immediately drawn to the dessert table, as always.

Not pictures was another table full of awesome Vietnamese food as well as hamburgers, hot dogs and salads. I had some of everything and Peanut had his first egg roll.

The dessert table had everything from the amazing beehive cake and cupcakes to rice crispy treats, cookies, kettle corn and oreo truffles.

Isn't that cake amazing?!

I also always love looking at the photos of baby's first year.
It's incredible how much they change, every day you hit a new milestone.

Let's all discuss this tutu. Holy yellow fluff.
This is why I need to have a baby girl.
Or maybe why I don't need to have a baby girl.

She is the cutest little thing ever!
She takes after her mom, obviously.

As party favors the kids were given age appropriate bee books.

Peanut absolutely loves his Buzz-Buzz Busy Bees book, complex with 3D bees.

He was super excited about this cluster of balloons.

He wanted to take them all with us.
I wanted to take them with us too. Who wouldn't want polka dot balloons?

Little Harlow was just loving the swing at the park,
while Peanut sat and covered himself in sand, which is all he really wants to do at parks anyway.

Thank you Joanne and Mike for a wonderful party and tons of fantastic ideas :)

Happy Birthday Mia!

#3 / 52 Food Adventures: Drink Your Greens

2012-01-17T00:00:00.000-08:00

We've been getting this gorgeous spinach in our CSA box lately.

It's not like the baby spinach we would get at the store and it has a great sweetness to it.

I knew right away that I wanted to try some of the smoothies I've been seeing all over Pinterest.

I tried 3 different smoothies and although they get an A for flavor,

the appearance is obviously lacking.

This first one came out a weird color because it's a blend of spinach, banana and strawberries.

Green Berry Blend

1 cup packed spinach

1 cup strawberries

1 banana

1/2 cup apple juice

1/2 cup ice

Blend.

I really liked this and I've decided that you can't really taste the spinach at all.

Luckily Peanut will try anything, regardless of how it looks because my dad said my smoothie looked like something Shrek would drink.

Peanut seemed to like it just fine!

I'll be making this again.

Banana, Avocado, Strawberry Smoothie

2 medium bananas

1 small avocado

1 cup strawberries

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup ice

1 tbs honey or agave (optional)

Blend.

Taste your mixture and add the honey or agave if you need it.

If your fruit is really sweet you might not.

I loved this one and Daniel seriously couldn't get enough of it.

If only I could get the boys to use a straw, this would all be so much easier.

Green Monster Spinach Smoothie was a fail that was entirely my fault because I lacked ingredients and it wasn't even blended enough resulting in weird chunks and pieces of leaves.

Chewing on your smoothie is weird.

If you try something new or come across some ideas,

join the 52 Food Adventures Community Board on Pinterest!

Did you try anything new this week?

85°C Bakery Cafe, Irvine

2012-01-14T08:37:00.000-08:00

Have you been to 85°C yet? You know, that bakery with the long line out the door...

the one with trays and trays and trays of goodies to choose from.

From squid ink rolls to marbled taro bread to lemon pastries, this is the place to go for baked goods and great coffee.

If you haven't been there then put it on your checklist and check out my post about it HERE

Fall is here!

2012-01-12T06:00:00.000-08:00

When we first moved way out here in the "wilderness" which is to say I'm 20 minutes away from

Huntington Beach where I grew up, but I'm 20 minutes into the wilderness I tell you.

Sure you may laugh at our OC wilderness but did you know that my friend Kelly and I were on a walk Tuesday and we saw vultures?!

Big ugly vultures with scary, icky red hangy-skinned heads and they were eating a dead bird.

That, my friends, is wilderness.

Anyway, out here in the wilderness of South Orange County we have lots of trees, and trails,

and gorgeous parks, and did I mention trees?

Perhaps this isn't a big deal to you but did you know that some of our trees have

leaves that change color?!

It's crazy, I know.

That first year I couldn't wait until the leaves changed during autumn.

Although it's still mostly green all year round I still love those streets where it seems like the seasons come alive.

Of course, these are Southern California trees and they didn't grow up with tree parents to mold and guide them and tell them that the leaves are supposed to change to gorgeous orange and red in the FALL!

Some did but we still have quite a few stragglers that are turning brilliant colors now.

These Orange County kids have been deprived of running through falling leaves

and jumping into piles in front of their houses.

The fact that it was 77°F doesn't help with my little fall fantasy.

So this daddy decided to take nature into his own hands and give these trees a little help.

Oh man, you should have seen these kids running around as the leaves fluttered around them.

Such a dad thing to do.

That man is halfway up that tree, shaken' it around.

Peanut is wondering what in the world is going on.

It's time to slow down

2012-01-11T08:00:00.000-08:00

The presents have been opened, the cookies devoured, friends and family visited and the past month has flown by in a blur of non-stop celebrations.

After spending weeks in anticipation, always looking forward to what is happening next, it can be hard for the kids (and parents) to switch gears and slow down.

Now is the time for a bit of quiet, for a bit of reflection, some semblance of sanity returned and a whole lot of Orange County beauty.

These five places will give you the calm and quiet you need:

see the rest of my article HERE

#2 / 52 Food Adventures: One Ingredient Ice Cream

2012-01-10T00:00:00.000-08:00

I've been seeing this ice cream for years now.

Just one ingredient, can you believe it?

It's creamy and delicious and sweet.

It's just frozen bananas!

Of course, I had to try it 3 different ways and I already have a plan for more ways to try this.

~~~~

But first, let's talk Pinterest.

Let's be honest, half of us can't plan a party (or a dinner... or a present....or get through the day) without first consulting Pinterest.

The lovely LeAnna suggested I start a Pinterest Board for inspiration and then we thought-

Hey! Let's do a community board!

It's a place we can all pin fun ideas for our 52 Food Adventures and

comment on recipes or ideas we've tried.

Check out the 52 Food Adventures Community Board and let me know if you'd like to be a part of it- I'll send you an invite to the board!

By the way, stop by LeAnna's blog and see how her food adventure went this week ~snicker~

So back to the one ingredient ice cream.

You freeze and then blend a banana. Tada!

I loved it. It's like a healthy eaters dream. Don't even tell people that it's straight frozen banana.

Give it to your husband, your kids and your I'm allergic to everything friend.

For more detailed directions go here. I found that it blended better in a food processor (I used a mini for just one banana) as the small amount bounced around in my blender.

But I think I'll make this again in a big batch.

It comes out like soft serve

so if you want it to be more like regular ice cream I suggest freezing it again for another hour.

I've seen this all over Pinterest and so I decided to try adding peanut butter.

I thought 2 tbs for one banana was way too much.

I also tried a chocolate version by adding cocoa powder.

2 tbs cocoa powder for every banana.

This was a big win for me.

Chocolate and banana. Yes!

Peanut thought he was getting away with murder when I let him eat some.

I mean, you could sprinkle this with some crushed nuts and you have a deconstructed frozen banana!

As you can see, it was a big hit.

Other variations I've heard of are Nutella (but seriously, an open jar of Nutella around here would just be dangerous), honey or a splash of vanilla.

I've seen other things that would up the calorie content but seriously,

start by trying the plain banana. I think you'll be impressed.

Now, if you'd like to link up, thanks to Alicia I'm trying out this new link tool, so click below and link up!

Kula Revolving Sushi Bar

2012-01-08T22:02:00.000-08:00

It's January and everyone still has ink stains on their fingers from the long list of New Years Resolutions.

Do people use pens still or is it just me? Are pens becoming obsolete?

Anyway, January is the month where everyone eats healthy and works out.

My solution the January mindset is sushi. Actually my solution is not to have the mindset, but if you do, well then head out and get some sushi!

Don't just go anywhere, try Kula where all the plates are a mere $2.

Did you hear that? $2 for quality sushi.

See my post on Kula at Eating The Orange.

Bicycle Dreams

2012-01-07T00:00:00.000-08:00

The last couple weeks we've had the most amazing weather.

It's been anywhere from low 70°s to low 80° but most often it's right in the mid 70°s which is absolutely perfect.

A few days after Christmas we were having one of those days.

Peanut was still exhausted from all the festivities but could not seem to settle down to nap.

We've never been able to force him into a nap and I just wasn't up to trying.

We decided that a bike ride down the street to the park would be the best remedy.

The park down the street from us has lots of different play areas for little Peanuts to tire themselves out.

He could spend hours in the sand/dirt/wood chips.

After a while we could see the Peanut slowing down.

He quietly sat there poking his stick in the ground.

Poke. Poke. Poke.

Look at that sleepy smile and those tired eyes.

The little Peanut was not happy to be leaving the park.

That's the worst part about the park, you know. Mommy always makes you leave.

On the way home B started laughing really hard.

Apparently Peanut just sort of leaned his helmet on B's arm and fell asleep.

Of course, all our loud laughing woke him up but before long his head was bobbing around, looking for a landing spot.

A little guidance from daddy and he found himself quite comfortable.

This kid, who naps well on, and only on, every second Tuesday in a month with a full moon when the wind is blowing from the East and Jupiter is in the Second House... fell asleep on a 5 minute bike ride.

I think he's having bicycle dreams.

Perhaps when we can't get him to sleep I should have B ride him around the neighborhood for an hour or two.

PS: Always wear a helmet, even if you are only riding down the street. Do not follow our example. :)

Eating the Orange, A New Blog

2012-01-04T23:25:00.000-08:00

Back in November, while preparing for the holidays, opening an etsy shop and knowing that I'm going back to work (more on that later), time seemed to be flying by.

I figured the only logical thing to do was to start a new blog!

Yay!

OK that isn't logical at all.

The thing is, I've been thinking about doing this for a while.

In fact, Suzanne Broughton and I first talked about me doing a food blog a couple years ago.

Suzanne is a blogging/media powerhouse. I first met her in 2009 after she invited me to BlogCrush that she so happened to Co-Found and has grown to the largest regional blogging organization in North America. She is a columnist, a producer and host for OC Family TV, and she writes for several blogs including her own.

I know.

When she called and asked me if I would start a blog for OC Metro I said yes without a second thought.

OC Metro is a business lifestyle magazine (you may have seen them already) and online site.

They previously had only business bloggers on their main site and have now opened up to 3 lifestyle blogs, one of which is my new blog, Eating the Orange.

Eating the Orange is all about food in Orange County

and I'll be covering a restaurant or other food related topic every Thursday.

So come on by and visit me there! I'll be posting links here on Spontaneous Clapping.

Find Eating the Orange HERE!

PS. If you come across a place that you love or someplace that you think would be worth trying... let me know!

#1 / 52 Food Adventures: Golden Beets

2012-01-03T00:00:00.000-08:00

We're starting off the year with an easy new item.

B and I both love beets and eat them fairly often but Peanut has been a bit beet deprived.

A few months ago I made him roasted beets and he liked them but man, do they make a mess!

Oh and did I mention that with the exception of the beets I made Peanut (once) we usually eat the canned kind? I know, it's just that it was so much easier... until I found this trick to roasting and peeling the beets.

So I've been keeping an eye out for golden beets that Peanut could pick up with his hands without the fear of a red-stained baby.

Are you ready for the great trick for peeling the beets?

Don't peel them until after you roast them and the skin slides right off.

For the red beets you can cover your hand with cling wrap or a sandwich bag to keep from staining your fingers.

Roasted Beets

2 medium beets, washed with the tops and tails cut off

Preheat your oven to 400°F.

Place your beets in the middle of a sheet of foil and then fold the foil

over the top, folding and folding until it is secured down.

Fold the ends up until they meet the middle as well.

The goal here is to make sure it's airtight so the beets steam in their packets.

Roast for 45 minutes.

Allow the packet to cool a bit and open them carefully.

Cover your hand with a plastic bag, gloves or cling wrap and peel the skin off the beets,

cutting the top and bottom off if necessary.

Now they are ready to eat!

I cut them into chunks for Peanut to eat as a finger food, he ate quite a bit during dinner and I think I'll use it as a snack during the day.

A word about beet greens, eat them.

Prepare them the way you would spinach and you'll find they are tasty and actually much sweeter than spinach.

Also, remove your greens as soon as possible as they actually suck up the sugars and water from your veggies. If they sit for too long your beets will end up soft and without the same level of sweetness.

Here's the verdict on golden beets: sweeter, milder and totally delicious.

Sometimes regular beets can taste a bit earthy, these are different and have an incredible sweetness to them. We'll be getting more of these!

We can also add Blueberry Vanilla Goat Cheese to this weeks new foods.

I used it on a salad with the beets, romaine lettuce and a vinaigrette.

Although I liked it, the vanilla makes it feel a little out of place on a salad.

I think this would be great on it's own or as the package suggests, with fruit.

A tiny hint of vanilla and lots of dried blueberries and blueberry flavor.

Did you try anything new this week?

I know we're only a few days into the year so you have plenty of time to catch up :)

Have you had golden beets before?

If you'd like to join the 52 Food Adventures Challenge you can read about it HERE or grab the button from the upper right side of the blog.

My Favorite Reads of 2011

2012-01-01T21:42:00.000-08:00

Last January I joined Goodreads as a way to journal the books I'm reading and what I think of them. They host a yearly challenge in which you set a book goal and they keep track of your status on the site.

My goal for 2011 was 52 books, one a week assuming that some weeks I might not finish one and some weeks I would finish several.

I read 55 books last year.

I can hardly believe it.

On January 20th I started The Hunger Games and finished on the 21st.

I read Catching Fire in it's entirety the next day.

I ran out and bought Mockingjay on the 23rd and finished it the 24th.

Despite the fact that I had a 11 week old baby, I gave-up any chance of sleep and inhaled the series.

Read the books and tell me what you think.

These are by far my favorite reads of 2011.

They stayed with me for weeks, the characters living in my mind throughout the days.

Nearly a year later I'm still excited about it.

Oh and the movie will be out in March and I seriously cannot wait.

2011 could also be called the year of YA dystopian society novels.

After reading The Hunger Games Series I was eager to read anything suggested to readers who liked that genre. I started reading all the suggestions and there you have most of them above.

Out of this group, although I like all of them, my favorite is Divergent by Veronica Roth.

May I also mention that she is 23 years old. Incredible what people can do.

The Maze Runner, Birthmarked, Matched and Delirium are all the first books in a series.

I'll be reading the next book to all of them but to be honest I typically like to wait until all the books are out and then read them all, one after the other.

Delirium writer Lauren Oliver gets bonus points for being an awesome author/blogger and letting her blog readers name the next 2 books in her trilogy. How cool is that?

In Delirium, love is a disease that the government cures you of when you turn 18. It is required and a normal part of every day life.

I thought love as a disease was an interesting concept as they dive into all the insane and sometimes awful things people do for love. Life without love, including parenting, is a very odd thing to behold.

I kept my momentum up by reading some fast YA novels in between some of my longer or heavier reads. If I pick up a book and don't get into it in the first few chapters I put it down to and revisit it soon after. Sometimes it's just a matter of mood.

That being said, I flew through these.

I won't go describing The Help as I'm sure you already know it's fantastic.

The Thirteenth Tale was awesome and recommended to me repeatedly by different people for good reason. Lots of twists and turns and I enjoyed them all.

The Red Tent had been sitting on my shelf for years. I've no idea why I didn't get to it sooner but I really liked it. Based on a Dinah, mentioned in the Bible in the Book of Genesis it's a very interesting historical fiction. I'll be reading more historical fiction this year.

I'm positive that my new found addiction to the library (which I hadn't been to in years) helped fuel my reading. Finding out you can have books transferred to your library for a quarter and having return deadlines really pushed me to find what I want and then read it immediately.

It also kept me from hitting a standstill when I lacked the funds to buy a new book.

Who can afford 55 new books a year?

That being said, I wish I owned some of these as they'd fit nicely in my future library.

I'll wrap up with a few children's books I really liked.

Don't scoff at children's books by the way. We're not talking picture books, all of these were at least a couple hundred pages long. In fact, Wildwood by Decemberist frontman Colin Meloy, was one of the longest books I read this year at over 500 pages. I picked that one up because I got sucked into the gorgeous cover illustrations.

Anything But Typical was is one of those books that I want others to read because of the perspective it gives as the narrator is an autistic middle school boy, in a very simple way, that people of all ages will understand.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate is a coming-of-age tale about a young girl who already seems to be growing against the grain. She bonds with her grandfather, the avid naturalist, as he teaches her about this mysterious and often shunned-upon topic called science. Callie has 6 brothers, a resistance to wearing petticoats and lace and the dream of a future that is unique to girls in 1899.

What did you read in 2011 and what do you recommend I read in 2012?

Little Chef

2011-12-29T21:01:00.000-08:00

Our little chef in training.

When we first started thinking about a Christmas present for Peanut a few things ran through out minds.... all of which had wheels.

Peanut seemed just a tad too small for push bikes and so we wanted to come up with something else.

As Peanut still had birthday presents stashed away to be re-wrapped for Christmas (thank you friends and family) the plan was to buy him one awesome gift.

A few weeks ago Peanut was watching B sauté some veggies when he picked up a plastic something or other and started mimic his daddy.

I got online a few minutes later to search for a wooden kitchen set.

I saw this vintage one fell in love... and I thought Peanut might like it too... but I really do love it.

On Christmas morning Peanut ran (in that almost-falling-forward-motion way that toddlers do) straight over to his kitchen without even a paste for a wowwowwowwow!

He immediately started dipping ladles in pots and moving pans around.

He turned nobs and opened doors.

These pictures were taken a few minutes after he saw it.

After reading the Amazon reviews I started to worry about assembly as the general word was that it took roughly 2-3 hours to assemble with one person saying 8 hours.

I decided to tell B about it sometime Christmas eve :) but fortunately my very handy dad not only put it together but delivered it to our place, stashing it in our garage so Peanut wouldn't see it.

I went to Ikea and bought the pots, pans and utensils for super cheap.

They really complete the feel of the set.

B and Peanut did some father-son bonding in the kitchen as daddy taught him the basics of cooking.

You know, simple stuff like controlling the heat, heating your pan to get the proper sizzle, taking orders on the phone, how to fire tickets, how to time your orders, checking the temp on your food, tasting your sauces.... you know, normal kid stuff.

I stocked the refrigerator with fruits and vegetables from Ikea and they use them in their dishes.

I'm pretty sure that Peanut is going to be a very inventive, cutting edge chef.
I can tell by his unusual flavor pairings.

I mean, who knew that grapes, oranges and garlic tasted so good together?

I know it tastes good because every time he "tastes" it he exclaims MMMMMMMM very loudly.

Every morning he makes us breakfast, complete with sizzling sounds and tastes for everyone.

Here is a video of daddy showing him the ropes on Christmas morning...

52 Food Adventures! A 2012 Challenge

2011-12-27T23:11:00.000-08:00

Would you like to join me in a challenge for 2012?

Not sure?

It involves eating...

Are you in?

The challenge, if you choose to accept it,

is to try 52 new foods this year.

That's right, we're going to try something new every week.
If the challenge sounds too, well challenging, don't you fret,
scroll down for tons of ideas on how you can have 52 food adventures this year.

~WHY~

Why not is a better question.

-You know that B and I love to try new things and

we also want Peanut to try new things.

-Well, because food should never be boring. Ever.

-For new experiences, new flavors and lots of fun.

~WHEN~
There are exactly 52 Tuesdays in 2012 which sounds like a given but there could be more.
For instance there are 53 Mondays and 2012 is a leap year, giving it 366 days instead of the normal 365... am I rambling?
Anyway, I'm going to report back here every Tuesday starting with January 3rd.
So try something new on New Years Eve!
I'll accept cocktails for the kick off :)

~WHO~
Anyone can participate, make it a personal goal or do it with the whole family!

~WHERE~
Have your food adventure wherever you please and report back here on Tuesdays!
If you miss a few weeks don't worry, just pick up where you left off.
I'll come up with a prize for the 3 people that participate the most.
Some kind of foodie package that I'll send to you.
It'll be something good that I promise you'll like!

Just comment on the Tuesday 52 Food Adventures post
OR
post on your own blog and link back here.
It'll be a lot of fun to see what everyone is eating.
As a blog post or comment you could include a recipe, a review,
a simple picture, a traumatic story, a few sentences or just a link back here
to see what kind of adventures we had.

~HOW~

I'm not saying you need to go to some exotic restaurant and

try something un-pronounceable that may or may not still be alive

(although B undoubtably will at some point during the year).

Here are lots of ways to have 52 food adventures this year:

*Order outside the box

In every place you eat there are are variety of items that you always choose from.

This is not the entire menu but those dishes that you normally look order.

Get something different.

Do you always get french toast? Try huevos rancheros.

*Bring the restaurant home

Make something at home that you have only ever had in a restaurant.

Maybe you aren't trying a completely new food but you are trying something different

and that counts as a food adventure.
OR you could try making on your own, something that someone else always cooks.
Let's see if your grandma's cake tastes the same when you make it.

*Just one bite

Sound familiar? Whatever it is that you are unsure about, just try one bite.

You may like it, you may love it, you may hate it.

It doesn't matter because at least you tried.

*Leap before you look

Also known as try now, ask later.

I've used this many times, especially at ethnic restaurants or get-togethers.

If you're not quite sure, sometimes it's better to let your mouth decide if you like it

before you brain decides for you.

*The change-up

Take your favorite dish and change it up!
You can make it healthier or gluten free.
You can change the ingredients, i.e. eggs benedict with pulled pork and bbq hollandaise
(that does sound good, doesn't it)
or add a new element or twist to it.

*Burst your bubble

Travel to different areas (outside your normal bubble) to find new stores or markets.

Maybe they'll have something you haven't tried before.

Ethnic stores are especially good for this.

*Just google it

Ever see something at the store and think,

"I have no idea what I would do with that"

Well that is what the internet is for.

Buy the food and look up a recipe or description for it when it.

*Opposites attract

Take 2 things you are familiar with and try them together.

Dare I say bacon and chocolate?

*Come on baby, gimme a second chance
So you say you hate that food, and maybe you do,
but when was the last time you tried it?

If you haven't tried the dreaded brussels sprouts since 2nd grade,
give them a second chance.

*When in Rome
Whether you are traveling to foreign land, eating at a new restaurant,
or celebrating a special occasion,
make sure to try what they are known for, what is regional and fresh,
or what is traditionally eaten.
This is especially true when traveling. Be adventurous!

*Menu Roulette
This doesn't happen often but there have been times when we really don't recognize anything.
Maybe it's in a different language or it might just be a unique menu.
So close your eyes and put your finger down.
Wherever it lands is what you order. Yes, we have done this.

*One for you, One for me
Order something new and something that is a favorite and share.
This way you are bound to like something.
The more people eating out, the more things you can try
without feeling like you need to finish a whole dish!

*The Adventure Seeker
Look through a menu and order whatever it is you've never had (or maybe even heard of)

*The Hybrid
Does this all sound like way too much?
Remember that you don't have to order live baby octopus to try something new.
Have you looked at the fruits and veggies in the market lately?
You could spend the whole year trying out things like pluots and grapples and broccoflower.

*That's very Pinteresting
Perhaps this year you could focus on making it through just 52
of the one million recipes you've repinned on Pinterest.
Or is it just me?

*Around the world, in 52 weeks
Take a few of the weeks out of the year to find something of a specific ethnicity or area.
Try Indian, Chinese, English, Greek, African, Egyptian, Russian or Peruvian.
Eat at a restaurant or look up a recipe.

Still here? What are you waiting for? Get out there and try something new!

Join the 52 Food Adventures Community Board on Pinterest!

A Very Merry Christmas

2011-12-26T22:13:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas festivities start on Christmas Eve with 4 pm mass

where we get to watch the kids act out the nativity which is always my favorite part.

This year mass was a bit different as we had a little Peanut who wanted to walk around the whole time.

As we were in the church hall the seating was chairs instead of pews and I was worried that Peanut was going to poke the people in front of us through the slats in the chairs.

He has this habit of lifting your shirt just a bit and poking your skin (or fat).

I believe he learned this from B who likes to the same and poke my skin (or fat).

It didn't help that the man in front of us had a good inch of skin (or fat) showing whenever he sat down.

I was very careful to keep watch of Peanut and make sure that he didn't poke the man's skin (or fat).

Which of course he did the moment I wasn't looking.

I just pretended I didn't know what happened.

I looked the other way.

Is that kind of lying frowned upon in church?

Peanut had his own tree in his room.

I grew up with one and wanted him to have one too.

He loved it and gave the appreciative WOW whenever we lit it.

And then he pulled it down (as you can see him doing)

After church we headed to my grandma's house and we were just about done eating and unwrapping presents when I remembered that I didn't get any pictures of Peanut in his holiday finery.

That nice mark on his face is from a head on collision with a rocking horse.

He tripped right before he got to it and his face sort of just slid down the side of it.

It didn't bleed at all but has left a nice scab in it's place.

Have I mentioned that Peanut loves Christmas?

He loves the lights, the decorations, the parties....he's quite the party animal.

When we got home Peanut went straight to bed while daddy and I stayed up.

We ate Sticky Toffee Pudding, which is now a tradition, exchanged a gift and set up for Christmas morning.

I was completely excited for Peanut to see what Santa brought him

and I'll share more of that with you soon.

At first all Peanut cared about was his kitchen set (which he went directly to) but eventually we got him to open some other presents.

All we actually bought him was the kitchen set and the rest of the presents under our tree were re-wrapped birthday gifts.

Thanks everyone for the birthday/Christmas presents!

After Christmas morning at our house we went to my parents for the feast to begin!

My sister Sherri created "A Very Pinterest Christmas" by coming with

gifts that included diy canvas photos, record bowls, homemade sweets, banana bread

and of course, Christmas photo props!

The props included everything from elf hats and ears, santa's hat and beard, reindeer antlers, rudolph's nose and any variation on those things that we could come up with.

I really like Scott's use of the elf ears and Rudolph's nose to create the Yukon Cornelius look.

I'm telling you, every Christmas party should have photo props!

We had lots of fun and all of us were spoiled, especially Peanut.

I'm pretty sure that at this point he thinks every get together is a party just for him.

How was your Christmas?

Irvine Park Railroad, The Christmas Train

2011-12-24T09:45:00.000-08:00

A few days ago my parents, B & I took the boys to Irvine Park Railroad to see Santa's Village and take the Christmas train to the North Pole.

Santa's village has a bounce house, coloring corner, cookie decorating area, games and much more.

Mrs. Claus reads stories and answers questions about Santa.

There are also lots of fun places to pose for pictures.

When we got there at 4:10 the tickets were sold out until 6 pm!

Fortunately a very nice man was able to get us on the train about 15 minutes later.

The boys were all loaded up, All Aboard!
and off we went!

We passed by horses and a peacock, tree filled with lights and other parts of the park.

Daniel absolutely loved the train!

ad

Peanut was just kicking back on papa's lap.
Later that night he said papa out of nowhere and hasn't stopped since.

When you arrive in the North Pole there is a big stage with Santa waiting for all the children (and one adorable puppy that we saw).

Peanut was more interested in running around and picking apart the hay.

The boys saw Santa again and it went a little better this time.
I'm pretty sure if Daniel hadn't started to fuss that Peanut would've been fine.

Smiling, I'm not so sure but I think he would have been okay sitting there.

I like the picture of Santa and Mrs. Claus in front of the Angel Stadium.

By the time we were done visiting Santa is was dark outside and you could really see all the lights.

The train heads back to Santa's Village past the trees and through the tunnel of lights.

It was packed when we got back to the other side!

Lots of excited little faces just waiting to get on the Christmas train and go see Santa!

It was really fun and we will definitely be going back next year!

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

Newport Beach Boat Parade (and kisses for the girls)

2011-12-22T09:10:00.000-08:00

A little over a week our friend Erica invited us to her parents house for the Newport Beach Boat Parade.

Despite having grown up here I've never seen it before.

The added bonus is that we got to see this little sweetie.

Just look at those big eyes.

Peanut couldn't stop kissing her.

He's a very lovey boy.

I kept telling him to be gentle.

You see how he's all scrunched up in the second picture?

That's what he does when I'm telling him not to do something that he wants to do.

Erica's parents have a gorgeous house that I showed you here.

We all brought appetizers and her dad made us warm apple pies which are actually the yummiest winter drink ever- just warm apple cider with a bit of Tuaca, topped with some whipped cream.

After we stuffed ourselves we headed out to the beach to check out the lights.

The houses are just as amazing as the boats.

Can you believe this house and it's dock?

That is an actual snowman in the bottom corner.

I have no idea how they keep a real snowman.

Erica says they pack it in sleeping bags at night, I'm sure they are packing new snow/ice on during the day.

Their house is decorated top to bottom

and although you can't really see it there is a santa on his sleigh being pulled by reindeer around and around on the roof.

Peanut was pretty impressed :)

Soon after the boats started passing by.

Peanut liked to wave and dance and was generally impressed with the whole thing.

Besides, I think he just liked being outside and getting to walk around at nighttime.

This ship was awesome!

A pirates ship with all the bells and whistles and if you look closely you can even see the alligator following, it's mouth opening and closing.

Afterwards we headed back to the house and ate some more food

and Peanut got a chance to hang out with his friend Mia some more.

He decided that Harlow shouldn't get all of the kisses so he passes some to Mia

as you can see in the video below.

Have you been to the boat parade or do you have something like it by you?

The Holidays Are for Giving

2011-12-20T22:07:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year, full of hustle and bustle and lots of excitement.

There are parties to go to, wish lists to make, holiday baking, lots of shopping, fantasies about toys and playtime and special trips to see Santa and of course, gifts, gifts, and more gifts.

Sometimes it's hard to remember that the holidays are also about giving.

What better way to remind and teach our children then to get them involved

in giving to these five child-centered Orange County charities:

read the rest of my article HERE

Cookies and Cousins

2011-12-19T00:08:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin Pecan Cookies with Brown Sugar Butter Frosting These are always favorites for fall

Easy Peasy Macaroons dipped in white chocolate and sprinkles

White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread

Well my parents annual Christmas party has come and gone and it was fantastic as usual.

I posted pictures of my parents house last year, you must stop and see their awesome backyard.

Last years cookie table featured 16 different kinds of cookies and I was determined to cut down this year.

My efforts were thwarted by special requests and more specifically my mother...

who declared half the cookies I was eliminating her "favorite".

This year she took on quite a few cookies herself and we ended up with

21 different types of homemade cookies.

23 if you take into consideration different flavor variations.

Here we have...

Lemon Bars Deluxe

Almond Window Cookies with Raspberry Jam or Apricot Jelly

I detest making window cookies so my mom did those this year. It was awesome.

White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread, dipped in white chocolate and sprinkles

Cranberry Orange Chews

Spicy Gingerbread Snowflakes- Peanut loved these. He's a weird kid.

My mom made them and I decorated them and I really love that system of doing things :)

Going clockwise in the collage and clockwise on the plate

Repeats of the window cookies and shortbread with

Salted Butterscotch Shortbread Bars (one of my personal favorites)

Peanut Butter Kisses & Lemon Bars

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip & Pumpkin Whoopie pies made by my sister Sherri

I think she needs to get on here and share this recipe with you- I expect this every year.
Thanks Sherri- here we go with the recipe!

Cranberry Orange Chews, Sugar Cookies and Revel Bars (another crowd favorite)

Sugar Cookies, Peanut Butter Kisses and Cherry Winks

Someday I'll learn to decorate sugar cookies with fancy frosting.

The thing is I need them to be stackable and I feel like a whole sugar cookie covered with royal icing might break your teeth. Thoughts?

That and the fact that I'm lazy.

I made my sister help me decorate these which just means painting them with corn syrup and dipping them in sprinkles.

My mom also buys danish butter cookies along with

See's Candy because we just don't have enough sweets.

On the back side of the plate are Almond Orange Bites.

Not pictured (along with the rest of the party and all of the guests)

were Salted Caramel Southern Comfort Truffles,

Rum Balls,

Chocolate Gran Marnier Truffles

and 2 different kinds of my mom's fudge.

Am I missing some? I can't remember.

Then people started showing up and I couldn't find my camera,

I spent several hours following kids from one room to another,

back and forth, all night long.

Most the time I was running after Peanut but occasionally it was someone else's child.

I almost missed this family shot but my mom let me know my camera was in the garage

(of course, why wouldn't it be?)

and I was able to sneak it in.

This is at the very end of the night before all the kids got into their pjs.

Next year I vow to get pictures of everyone.

I have approximately 5 pictures of B, Peanut and I and

almost none of both my parents with him.

I didn't even get a picture of him in his cute little argyle sweater.

I am so happy I got this shot!!

Afterwards all the cousins got cozy in their pajamas

and played around the Christmas tree.

Everyone had a great time and we can't wait until next years!

Someone Cares Soup Kitchen, Costa Mesa

2011-12-15T14:47:00.000-08:00

When the holidays come around we all find ourselves thinking about food.

We think about stuffing ourselves on Thanksgiving,

what to make on Christmas morning

and sweets to bake with friends and family.

What if we were wondering where to find our next meal instead?

What if we were rearranging our day to make it to the soup kitchen between 1 and 4 pm?

A few weeks ago I spent a few hours helping at Someone Cares Soup Kitchen in Costa Mesa.

I'd love to tell you all about the people I met, the fantastic food,

the hilarious chef and of course... raise a little awareness and a little money.

Click HERE for my post.

Christmas Decor at tpt home, costa mesa

2011-12-14T13:30:00.000-08:00

Are you ready for a marathon of Christmas decorations, inspiration and trinkets galore?

I really meant to post about tpt home back before Easter and here we are in Christmas.

But if I thought Easter was spectacular then Christmas just blew me away.

tpt home is a ginormous store in the SOCO Center you see off the 405.

It's packed with home decor of all types.

It attracts designers, interior decorators, party and event planners,

wedding planners and people like us who want to decorate or even transform their space.

Don't you love all the wintery accent pieces they have?

The products range from very cheap to some pricier items

but none of the items will compare in price to what you would have to pay

in a designer store.

Normally the majority of their stock aren't themed like you find at Christmas.

But at Christmas you find incredible displays every way you turn.

I loved the little bit of sparkle on the tips of this foliage.

Some tables or areas are simply tons of product set together in a pretty display for you to pick from.

I didn't notice them at the time but I love those green, red and white

whatchamacallits in the bottom left corner.

I also loved this holly tree.

Simple, modern, with the perfect amount of sparkle and snow.

Although it may not all be your style, you could find inspiration everywhere.

I love these wreaths hanging off these vintage mirror doors.

Everything is for sale, including the pieces you see the items on, like the doors themselves.

I'm really loving all the natural looking elements with snow and frost on them.

In tpt, they use the entire space to their advantage.

Things are hung from the ceiling, stacked on the floor and poised on tables.

There are loads and loads of fully decorated trees.

Near each tree you find bins of all the objects you need to create your own masterpiece.

All I have to say is THANK GOD we didn't have this place before my wedding.

I went with a winter theme and all these icy elements are right up my alley.

These are really hard to see but there are these whimsical light strands

that sort of hang down in soft curls.

I need these in my house. Or my room.

The trees are in so many different color combinations.

I love the fall colors on the right.

It is rich and warm and decadent.

They also have a really impressive selection of artificial trees.

Growing up I always had a small flocked tree in my room.

I loved my little tree.

They have kinds I've never seen before.

All variations of flocking,

all variations of pine needles.

Although I've never been a fan of artificial trees (Christmas just wouldn't be the same)

I can say that if I ever decided to get one,

I would probably come here and spend a couple hundred dollars on an amazing one.

I briefly thought about getting a fake tree this year.

My plan was to go the complete opposite of a regular Christmas tree.

I figured that I may as well go all the way and flip my tree upside down like this one.

I've seen them around a couple times and I love the way they look.

Super fun and I'm thinking a future kids room with a big upside down tree....

with a little less decor on it.

I also wanted a aluminum or white tree instead of a green one.

Of course, I fell in love with this silver tipped tree.

You didn't really notice the glitter at first but the lights were just glowing and bouncing around it.

Gorgeous.

Are you looking for trees?

Ornaments?

Nutcrackers?

Perfect polka dot dishes to stuff with goodies and give to friends?

$2.97 each and they would make a perfect hostess gift.

Maybe you just need some serving pieces for the parties you'll be throwing.

Forget red and green, how about pink and blue baubles for you?

Maybe you could just indulge in one pretty piece to center a display around.

I'm still dying over the wintery woodland details.

I need these frosted pieces of wood.

I see these laying across a mantel where you would get the full effect of the snow on top.

Flickering candlelight, sparkling snow.

Frosted trees are a great way to show off bold ornaments.

Did I mention you can by the fully decorated trees?

Oh yeah.

And yes, they are crazy expensive.

I mean, look at the amount of things they've attached to those trees!

Green, blue, copper and white.

Really unique with peacock details.

People are so creative.

Modern, sophisticated, swanky, luxurious.

Black, silver, metallic chocolate and crystal.

Perfect to carry over to New Years.

Gorgeous traditional archway with ribbon hung stars and berry accents.

Individually it may not work for you but in a display this just sparkles.

Speaking of sparkle....

from garlands to wreaths to little accent pieces, tpt has everything you could think of.

I'm wondering if they are going to have an after Christmas sale.

I'm not sure that Peanut knew we were in a store....

I mean, for all he knew I was taking him on some fun Christmas adventure.

So head on over to tpt home and do some last minute Christmas decorating!

Sacrificial Offering to Santy Claws: Check

2011-12-13T17:23:00.000-08:00

Do you remember last years pictures with Santa Claus?

This was my favorite from last year.

Santa squishing my little sumo baby.

This year was equally as funny for mommy.

The Peanut may not agree.

Peanut missed a nap and was tired before we even left for the mall.
Yes, I know, a nap is required before potentially traumatic events involving

weird white stuff growing out of their face while people point and laugh.

Mommy gets a big fail on this one.

The boys are on different schedules and it's nearly impossible to get both their timing right.

Daniel was crying before we even sat him down because he wanted a snack.

I'm pretty sure that set off Peanut, who then took one look at Santa and was like

Get Me Out Of Here!

I think they had a good time.

The trauma was nothing a few minutes with Bob Builder couldn't fix.

Daniel was scoping him out.

I'm pretty sure they shared a joke or two.

Yes, much better.

I'm pretty sure Peanut was plotting to run Santa over should he come our way.

Don't mess with this elf, man.

5 minutes later Peanut had a meltdown of epic proportions.

He came home and slept for 2 hours.

Celebrating Christmas is harder than you think.