Steph's Pick - Panini Recipes
Mar 26, 2010
Remember this post? Probably not.... that was back in May of 2008. I can't imagine that anyone was reading our blog at that time :)
Remember this post? Probably not.... that was back in May of 2008. I can't imagine that anyone was reading our blog at that time :)
Now, I'll admit, I'm a little biased towards pretty things. I think most of us would admit that we are, right? So when I was first introduced to textile design guru, Amy Butler's fabric a couple months back, I couldn't help but be pleasantly surprised. Fabric that actually looks like it was designed in the 21st century, what???!!! Although I have yet to purchase any of her lovely textiles, I'll admit, I've been drooling over so many of her lines and dreaming of my first fabric store outing ever since :)


Interested in an easy-peasy recipe??? And by easy I mean E-A-S-Y!!! Isn't every cook looking for the occassional recipe that takes no time and tastes super yummy?
Spa Deals - yes please!!! Count me in! All across the nation spas are offering select treatments for only $50.
Although I have yet to actually participate in this event, I just got off the phone with the Hotel Valley Ho booking my treatment - The Best Fifty (25 min Facial and 25 min Massage) - yipee!!
Go here to enter your email and zip code to find participating spas in your area. There are all kinds of treatments like massages, pedicures, body wraps, facials and more.
Everyone could use a little pampering, right? Book your appointment before Sunday.
I'm not ashamed to admit that I LOVE our church nursery!!! What an incredible blessing that other people are willing to watch our little cutie-patutie while we go to church. After retrieving Nora from the nursery a couple of times we would always find all of our valuables (the 3 B's - Baby, Bottle and Bag) labeled with Nora's name written on masking tape. You know me - that just wasn't going to do.
Introducing InchBug Labels for Bottles and Sippy Cups. Perfect! We were lucky enough to receive an order of these for Nora from some dear friends and they have been so fun. As you can see from the picture above, they are perfect for our bottles and will work just as well with her sippy cups in the future.
On another note - it's cold (brrrrrr...) and rainy here in AZ today. Although it isn't preferrable weather it was a great reason to bust out one of Nora's cute hats. Yipee.... love me some TwoSeasideBabes hats!!!

As most of you know, I became a mom to our daughter, Nora, in July. Mommy-hood has been such a great adventure!
Last week we were fortunate enough to spend a 5-day family vacation in the Florida Keys with Mom and Dad Triggs, Mom Flies and Nick, Abby and Adelyn. How fun is that!!!???Seriously.
We spent our days playing with babies, watching a little Olympics (Go USA!!!), chatting with the ladies, getting some sun, taste-testing Key Lime Pie, cookin' yummy food and lovin on our family. It was such a blessing to have some serious R&R with both of our families.
I thought in order to give you all an idea of how our trip went I'd give you a short list of the Do's and Don't's in traveling with a 7 month old :)
DO be sure to pack enough diapers in your diaper bag for the flight (wish I would have taken this advice - yes - we did spend 30+ min frantically looking for a couple more diapers in MIA)
DON'T bring a stroller that won't fit through security. It only adds more time onto your already lengthy security check.
DO bring a portable DVD player for easy access entertainment on the plane and in the car
DON'T plan on reading on the plane. I used to love this aspect of traveling.
DO vacation with your family. It was a blast!
And finally DON'T try the Rum Runner (the Key Lime Pina Colada was much better - hehe)
There's something about canvas art that I just love. I'm always thinking of new things I can create with canvas. Remember this monogrammed wall art?
Well since receiving Nora's newborn photos from Kimberly Bee I've been searching for a company that prints photos on canvas. The hardest part of this search has been finding affordable printers. I wasn't about to spend hundreds of dollars.
Canvas People is having an AWESOME deal right now. They are offering a FREE 8x10 photo canvas per household. (A $55 savings). All you have to do is pay s&h (app. $15).
Now I waited to post this until receiving my canvas in the mail (just to make sure I was suggesting something worthwhile). It came last week and looks great!!! I'd highly suggest you snag one of these today.
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Alright Kristina - you're dead!!!
Seriously.
Just a couple weeks back my dear friend Kristina introduced me to Bakerella and my life hasn't been the same since. You all don't even want to know all of the things I've made off of this site since we met. One of the things I've had 2x (yes - 2x in 3 weeks) is Bakerella's Peach Crumb Cake. It's probably the easiest thing I've EVER made and for those of you with a serious sweet tooth - I promise you - you will thank me.
Peach Crunch Cake
Ingredients.
24.5 oz jar of sliced peaches in light syrup (yes - you saw that right - CANNED peaches - I still can't believe it)
1 package yellow cake mix
1 stick butter (1/2 cup), cut into 16 pieces
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Directions.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Layer ingredients in a 13 X 9 dish, in order starting with the peaches.
Bake for about 40 minutes.
Serve warm or cold… with or without ice cream.
See Bakerella for drool-worthy step-by-step instructions.
Photos: Bakerella.com
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Like so many things, I heard about Mustela's Dermo-Cleansing from another mommy friend. It came up in conversation as we were talking about Nora's baby acne :) I figured I really had nothing to lose so I ran over to Babies "R" Us and bought a bottle. Now - the price tag is a little shocking (around $16/bottle); however, I assure you, it lasted nearly 6 months for us.
I fell in love with it after the first use. Couple things I love about it - it's neutral pH, hypoallergenic, makes baby's skin so soft and lastly, it smells so good. I really would recommend it above the other baby washes. If you do try it - let me know what you think.

Need some fun idea's for Valentine's Day Gifts? Here are just a few fabulous (and fairly easy) ideas.
1. Cupcake Take Along - believe it or not. isn't that the cutest way to package up all one might need to make cupcakes. I'm already dreaming of how I might be able to use this idea soon.
2. A Valentine's Day Gift Box of Cake - yes! really. Bakerella has done it again.
3. Printable Valentine's Day Gift Tags
4. Rock Candy - Sorry Nora - You have no say in your upcoming Valentine's day treats for your fellow classmates - we will be doing Rock Candy ASAP. Even if it's in a few years :)
Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!
Isn't the internet so great?!!! (and so bad at the same time) I can spend countless hours on the internet reading about people's lives, drooling over delicious food, researching child-rearing questions or shopping for Nora's new outfit. I'll be the first to admit - I spend way too much time on the computer. However, it's hard not to when there are so many great sites. Which is exactly what I wanted to post about. Below are four of my favorite websites/blogs and Alan will make it five with one of his favorites.
6 months.
think i'm creative? think again. i'm simply surrounded by very creative people who inspire me.
How fun is this!!! Aren't these colorful pictures drool-worthy? When I first saw this cake tutorial on Hostess of the Mostess (my favorite blog!) I knew I had to try it. I kept thinking of all of the fun ways I could use it.
Well - use it I did. One of my dear friends' birthday was this past Wednesday and I was having her over to celebrate (Happy Bday Laura!). I wanted a fun and easy cake recipe. Enter - Rainbow Cupcakes. Yes - I said cupcakes! Although these pictures are of a cake I thought I'd do cupcakes instead. And let me tell you - they turned out great!
Ingredients:
White Cake Mix (and ingredients noted on back of box)
Food Coloring
Cream Cheese Frosting
Directions:
This is so easy..... Make white cake according to directions on box. Divide evenly in small bowls (# of bowls determined by the number of colors you're making). Add food coloring to bowls and stir well. Layer in cake pan/cupcake pans one blob at a time :) Bake according to box instructions. Cool. Frost. Easy-peasy, huh?
Before starting - please know that the last thing I want to do is discourage a parent and make them feel not up to par. If you've made the choice to go with disposable diapers, that's ok by me (frankly - both us agree that disposables are MUCH easier). So, these posts are not meant to make those of you who choose to use disposable diapers feel badly.
I'm new to cloth diapering, so I don't have all of the answers. And I'll be honest, we hesitated for the longest time, mostly because it seemed like so much work. I think it may have even taken us all 9 months of my pregnancy to come to a final decision to plunge into the world of cloth diapering. But, my experience thus far has been positive and because many of you have asked me why we chose cloth diapers I thought I'd post about it this week. Today I'll cover the reasons why we chose cloth diapers and later this week I'll answer some common cloth diapering questions.
Our Reasons to use Cloth Diapers
1. Cost
This was our main reason. Disposable diapers are expensive. If a child is potty trained at 3, he/she will wear an estimated 8,000 disposable diapers — and buying Luvs, Pampers, or Huggies in their economy-sized packs at stores like Target, Babies R Us, Amazon.com, or Costco works out to an average of $.19/diaper. That’s an estimated $1,520 per child, assuming I buy the diapers at this economic price every time. If I buy the diapers in a regular-sized pack at a grocery store, the average price is $.24 — that’s a whopping $1,920 per child. (and to be completely honest - this was the BEST CASE scenario as most $ numbers I've seen have been much higher than this)
The price range varies for cloth diapers, depending on what kind you choose. I’ll be honest — we chose one of the most expensive kinds, the Bum Genius All-in-Ones (see picture below), the average price for those are around $16 per diaper. Now we bought a couple extra items – a 12-pack of flannel wipes ($12), a scent proof bag for her dirty diapers ($20) and a smaller version scent proof bag for my diaper bag ($15). That totals a little more than $400. You can use these diapers and wipes for every child, too, so you’re looking at barely more than $400 for all your diapering years. If you had three kids in disposables, that’s $4,500. 
In the U.S. alone, 18 billion disposable diapers are thrown in landfills each year, taking around 500 years to decompose. Disposable diapers make up the third largest item in landfills, after newspapers and food and beverage containers–a big deal, since they are a single product, used by a limited portion of the population. Once I started thinking about that, it just didn’t sit well with me.
But what about water use? Isn’t it good eco-practice to cut down our household water consumption? Sure thing. But washing cloth diapers at home uses 50 to 70 gallons of water every three days–about the same as a toilet-trained child or adult flushing the toilet five to six times a day. They’ll start doing that once they’re potty trained anyway.
Do I think that cloth diapers are for everyone? No. Has it suited my lifestyle and integrated well into my mothering? Absolutely. In the end, each mother (or father) has to do what best suits their lifestyle, and then be at peace with their decision.
Yes - in motherhood, the little things like Bibs make a world of difference :)
Pre-Nora I had seen various blogs highlighting this bib, but it wasn't until Nora started eating solids that I realized how wonderful it was to have a good bib. The BabyBjorn bib is superior to a number of other bibs for a few reasons. First, the neck is designed like a necklace with continous fastening, so it can be adjusted to fit your child perfectly. Second, the deep pocket really does catch most food spills. And last - it's FDA approved and dishwasher safe!
I've had a handful of people ask me about photography resources that I'd recommend. I'll be the first to admit - I really don't know a lot about photography. Actually - there are nearly 2,000,000 folks out there that know way more than I do. But - I'm learning. I bought my first digital SLR camera (Nikon D90) about 9 months ago and quickly dove into the twisted, confusing and wonderful labyrinth that is Photography. I've taken more bad shots than there are grains of sand but I've also taken a handful of photos that I've loved - and they keep me going. And thankfully with the help of some incredible resources I feel like I'm actually getting somewhere.
Read more...
Why yes - this is a new series!!! No promises in terms of how many "Nora Recommends" posts you all will receive, but I figured it was about time to start telling some of my other mommy friends about all of the great infant and child gear out there!
Trust me when I say - every infant - correction - teething infant - needs a Sophie Le Giraffe. I first heard about Sophie from a friend who said her son just couldn't get enough of this little giraffe. Not shortly after having this conversation I also saw Martha Stewart highlight Sophie on her show. And then much to my surprise my very thoughtful MIL sent Nora Sophie as a gift upon her birth (thanks Nana!).
At $16 I couldn't imagine that this little teething toy was worth the money. Boy was I wrong! Not only is Sophie french (which is always fun), she also appeals to all of your child's five senses.
She really is Nora's favorite toy.
You can get Sophie in various children's boutiques or online. At this point I haven't seen it at BRU or Target.
I'm finally getting around to posting dedication day pictures (sorry for those who have been asking when they are coming). As I mentioned in a previous post, Alan and I dedicated Nora at our church (Scottsdale Bible Church). A baby dedication is essentially an opportunity for us and our families to acknowledge publically that Nora is a gift from God and that we will commit to raising her in a Christian home and will teach her to love and serve Jesus. We were blessed to have many family and friends present at her dedication and her party afterwards. Despite my love for photos I took NO pictures of people - just food. I'm so sad about that. Thankfully Amy snapped a quick shot of Alan, Nora and me with Joy, Kevin and Reagan before the service.

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."
Joshua 24:15
Read more...Wow! I apologize for the lack of blogging lately. For those of you who read our blog frequently - you know that a week and a half of no posts is a long time for us :) Well, the last week and a half has been full of lots of highs and lows. We started last week off with nasty colds (102 temps) for all three of us. I would not recommend that. After a couple fun days of recouperating we were back in the saddle again and took a trip to Iowa to see some of our loved ones. Although not all are displayed in the photos below we were able to see Aunt Amy and Uncle Erik, Gma and Gpa Triggs, GG and GG Triggs, GGG Vivian (yes - that's five generations still living!), Great Aunt Peggy, Nana Flies, Aunt Sara and Uncle Kyle, Aunt Abby and Uncle Nick, Cousin Adelyn (for her birthday party)and dear friends, Liz and her son, Easton and Brian, Allie and their daughter, Reese.
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