Menu Plan 6/26 - 7/2 and Fun Photos

It feels like it has been forever since I have been on here.  I guess that's because it has.  I have one project too many going on right now and am finding a hard time completing anything.  I was actually able to put a meal plan together this week though (out of necessity) to use up my garden harvest.  I have an abundance of dill and spinach.  A funny thing happened...I thought I was planting beets, but I must have a marble loose, because I planted 4 rows of spinach instead.  Sometimes I scare myself.

So, here is what we're eating this week:

Meal #1 (Family BBQ - my contribution):  Cucumber and Dill Pasta Salad along with grilled fish and sausages.
Meal #2:  Asian Salad with Spinach, Chicken, Oranges, Almonds, and Sesame Ginger Dressing with Crusty Bread
Meal #3:  Dill and Feta Cheese Frittata with Spinach Salad or Cooked Spinach
Meal #4:  Chicken and Pesto Paninis with Fruit Salad
Meal #5:  Sandwiches made with Leftover Frittata with Roasted Red Peppers on Baguette

And of course, since it's summer, I have to be honest and say that the other night we'll be having leftover pasta salad with sausages on the grill.  Pretty fancy here.  LOL.

Here are a few fun pics from our week...

Mama and her fawn right outside my house

Nursing....awwwww!

Little Bean with her first fish - those little pink princess poles really work!

Have a great week everyone!

Meal Plan 4/24-4/30 and Easter Recap

Wow...long time, no blog.  I have been a little busy with other obligations and a little (make that a lot) uninspired.  However, I am back and have new ideas brewing in my head...hopefully some will come out as expected.

We had a great Easter...the Easter bunny came and was very generous...little Bean got to hunt for eggs at home and at Grandpa/Grandma's house.  Lucky girl.  We had some amazing weather which is a first for us in the inland northwest...it has been a cold, wet, and windy spring here.  Here are a few photos of our day...

Non-stop running all day

Love, love, love this pic

These bracelets were her favorite Easter gift!

Check out these shoes!!!

Cousins climbing a tree

What else is this thing for?

Okay, thanks for pretending that you care about my Easter :)

Now, here's the meal plan for the week:

Meal #1: (was supposed to be Easter dinner, but we were still too full from Easter brunch to eat):  Sauteed Chicken with a Lemon Buerre Blanc with Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus
Meal #2:  Penne with Eggplant Marinara and Feta Cheese
Meal #3:  Egg Salad Sandwiches (to use up all of those dyed eggs) with Tossed Salad
Meal #4:  Asian Chicken Salad (again) with Sesame Ginger Dressing (gotta use up all that dressing)
Meal #5:  Butternut Squash and Black Bean Winter Chili with Cornbread

Have a great week everyone!

My Friend, the Photographer

There are certain gifts that you receive in life that stand out among the others.  Mostly, they are the ones that were not expensive or trendy.  But instead the ones made and given by the ones you love.  I received one of those gifts today.  It is not the first gift of this magnitude that I have received from this friend either...which reminds me how truly blessed I am to have her in my life.

My dear friend Jill, the photographer, sent me a belated Christmas gift today which included three framed floral prints...which I have not decided exactly where to put them yet...will post a photo when they are up...as well as a disk of photos from the photo shoot she did of Little Bean during her last visit in November.  The photos are so beautiful and they are already some of my most cherished.  Jill has been so generous taking pictures of our family for years - from Christmas cards to Baby to Toddler.

I wanted to share some of them here.  Let me just say that it is so hard to narrow them down...I love them all.

 And she found a few back from when Little Bean was just 9 months old...

There is something about her photos that makes her look almost angelic.  I hope that you have enjoyed these.  Leave a comment and let Jill know what you think.

Jill, thank you not only for these pictures, but for being a force in my life for so many years.  I truly don't know what I would do without you.