taco rice bowl {in the kitchen}

On the way home from work the other day, I was trying to conjure up a new dinner dish using ground beef. Spaghetti and chili were getting a bit old and besides, Oakley doesn't like tomato sauce {seriously. What kid doesn't like spaghetti?!}. I really liked the idea of tacos but we didn't have any tortillas or shells so I started thinking about putting it over rice. I love rice bowls and I love tacos. A good combination, I'd say!

Here's what I did:

Ingredients - 

2 lb ground beef

1/2 onion

1/2 red pepper

2 cups chopped fresh spinach

1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

1/2 cubed avocado

1 cup diced cucumber

taco seasoning

1 cup cooked rice

ranch dressing 

salsa

Brown beef with onion and pepper. Season to taste with taco seasoning.

Meanwhile, start cooking rice. {Invest in a rice cooker if you haven't already ... it's my favourite kitchen appliance!}

While things are browning and cooking, chop spinach, tomatoes, avocado and cucumber. 

Put rice in bowl, spoon beef mixture over rice & top with veggies and desired sauce {if any}.

It was a healthy, filling supper that really turned out well! 

mini aprons {a sewing, DIY post}

This month, I decided to sew a couple little aprons for some sweet girls in my life. One had a birthday {three years old!} and the other was for Christmas {my adorable niece}. I used my high school home-ec knowledge {and skills. MAD skills} and made my own pattern out of kraft paper. I used a simple cotton fabric and double-wide bias tape for the strings. I also cut out some heart shapes for cute little pockets. I forgot to take measurements before I wrapped them up but here are some pictures ... MINI aprons. How much cuter can you get??

Little heart pockets for cute little hands!

Pink dotted aprons for playing or helping in the kitchen!

I loved using my {grandma's} sewing machine ... it felt good to make something!

stripes, cords & leopards {a work outfit post}

I work in a great office where our dress code is pretty casual. We can wear {nice} jeans if we want but are free to dress it up whenever we feel like it. I often wear nice pants {non-denim} and then get creative with my top{s} and accessories. It's a fun change from my at-home wardrobe and a chance to come up with some different ideas or try out things I've seen in magazines or online. This outfit is from a couple weeks ago. The concept of stripes and animal print has been done before, but I just liked how this whole combo came together. Plus I had just got these awesome green cords in the mail and had to make an outfit to include them!

Details:

Cords - GAP 

Cardigan - Banana Republic

Striped Tank - GAP

Grey Tank - Old Navy

Leopard Flats - Payless

Necklace - ALDO

anchors aweigh! {a birthday bash post}

Did you know that that's the right way to spell "anchors aweigh"? It's not "anchors away" like so many people write. I was blown away when researching "sailor terminology" for O's birthday party. (Yes, I am that nerdy mom.) We planned a nautical party for him (of course) and I had so much fun. Lots of things were Pinterest-inspired and I was happy with how it all turned out! Here's a look at our little man's big day …

Fishbowls and vases full of candy and treats for our guests. 

(I had wanted to tie all of them around but the fishbowls were a bit TOO round!)

This clever label is a copy from Pinterest. 

In case your'e wondering, this is how we got blue punch … er, Ocean Water.

Lemonade

Raspberry Lemonade Kool-Aid Mix 

(to make it blue)

Sprite

Mix to taste. 

(Read: my husband made it. I have no idea what sort of portioning he used.)

My ah-may-zing sister-in-law, Justine (who also hosted the party) 

whipped up this chalk art to welcome people.

When she said "I'll write 'Happy Birthday Oakley' …" I was NOT expecting this.

But it was incredible (and VERY much appreciated!)

I made this banner out of construction paper … I had originally planned to cut them into triangles, which is why they aren't square, but ended up liking the rectangle look.

I got those striped bunting banners off Pinterest too. Find them (along with other pretty printables) here.

He loved his cupcake smash. 

Too much. 

It was awesome.

I did a little photo shoot for his birthday.

It took SO long to get this picture because he was so busy just being crazy & bouncing the balloons out of the crib constantly.

Cupcakes!

Chocolate Recipe

White Recipe

Buttercream Recipe

The cupcake liners and toppers are from DOLLARAMA! Yes. You read right. 

My good friend Krista found them for me! 

I took a picture of Oakley every month for a whole year and displayed the pictures at the party. 

It was really cool to see them all together! 

I was so blessed by all the friends and family who came to celebrate with us. We had a good time visiting and eating and eating and eating. (I may have gone a bit overboard on the whole food thing.)

I know Oakley won't remember his first birthday but it was more a celebration for Jordan and I and a chance to show appreciation to those people who helped us through his first year. It was a bit over the top but I was super pleased with it and will probably tone things down for the next few years until he can have an "actual" birthday party with little friends whose parents I don't need to feed too! 

Thanks for taking our little birthday bash tour! 

Time, Expectations and Reality {a birthday-eve post}

Tomorrow is a day that I have been waiting for for an entire year. I have literally counted down months, days, hours. I've been making plans and dreaming of everything this day would bring.
Tomorrow my baby is one. A whole one year old. This year has been the most trying, exhausting, terrible, wonderful, amazing year of my life. Becoming a mom threw me into the steepest learning curve I've ever encountered and I experienced a lot of self-doubt and a lot of tears. But I also learned the joy of loving someone so deeply you would do anything for them, including losing sleep and sanity!
I'll be honest, I built up the one-year mark to be a huge beacon of hope ... when O was one, we would be sleeping twelve wonderful hours every night (we're not). When O was one, he would take a bottle - no problem - and I wouldn't have to nurse him anymore (I'm still nursing and pumping at work because he won't take anything else). When O was one, things would be easy, I'd have it all figured out (I don't). This isn't to be discouraging ... things that were hard when O was small ARE easy now, but each stage brings new challenges. I'm realizing that this "milestone" is just a part of the journey. Yes, it's exciting and wonderful and I look back on this year with awe and a sense of accomplishment. But it's not going to solve all our problems and I'm learning to be OK with that. If I have to pump every day at work for another month or two, I guess that's fine. Eventually things will work themselves out ... right?
If you're a new mom or preparing to welcome a little one into your family for the first time - take heart! Yes, it's difficult. I have not worked very hard at hiding that this year {maybe a little TOO open at times?} But it gets easier ... these struggles you're having now, whether that be feeding, sleeping, loneliness ... you'll learn to cope and you'll get through. I promise. This is coming from someone who honestly didn't know if she'd make it to her son's first birthday. Seriously. Those first months were a dark time for me. And maybe they aren't or won't be for you and that is GREAT. I'm thrilled for you. But if you feel like you're having an out-of-body experience and don't know if you'll ever find your way back to your old self - you're not alone. I want to encourage you and make sure you know that doing your best - even when it seems like you're failing - is all you can do. I'm still learning this lesson. But. I think I'm finally starting to believe it.
I am also starting to be able to look back on this year and see God's faithfulness, his hand in those hard times that carried me through and the lessons he wanted to teach me are beginning to surface. Lessons of selflessness, contentment, a posture of continual prayer before the Throne and a deep dependance on the One who knows my heart and knows exactly what I'm going through. Tough lessons that came through tough times, but I look at my little man and I'm so thankful.
I am truly blessed by this small dude - I love watching him grow and learn. It's such a fun journey. I want to go into this next year not wishing away each day. The days were long but the months flew. I know it's cliche, but enjoying each day and each stage is truly a struggle for me. I'm not a baby person. But he'll only be one once. He will never been one day, one week, one month again. And there are days I miss that time.
Anyway.
Tomorrow. O will be one. And I will take pictures and celebrate. And I'll prep for our big {possibly over-the-top?} party on Saturday. Because it's a big deal. But after Saturday, life goes on as usual. I will continue to work on getting O to drink cow's milk and sleep through the night. And pray. A lot.

Happy Birthday to my spunky, smiley, sweet little boy. We love you.

printed pants in the fall {a casual outfit post}

It snowed where I live today. Snowed. I feel like fall just got here and I was getting my wardrobe all switched over to light jackets and sweaters and riding boots. And now the reality that winter is just around the corner hit me square between the eyes. So sad. All those cute clothes will be hidden underneath heavy coats. Hopefully this first snow doesn't last long ... I haven't even got O a winter jacket yet!
I only have one pair of skinny (blue) jeans right now and often don't feel like wearing them everyday - I like to switch it up ... and also wash my clothes. So I had been wearing my red and tan skinnies off and on but was totally avoiding my floral printed pants. They are decidedly summery and in light of the snow, I wasn't feeling overly summery today. But while O was napping this morning and I got ready, I made the call to try and make my floral pants work for fall. I need more options for daily outfits ... the mom uniform of jeans and a tee worked for a while but I like to step it up a notch - especially with my return to work coming so soon! I really like layers, mixing patterns and being cozy which can be observed on my "Fashionology" pinboard. I kind of went crazy in that department. Anyway. Here's the outfit I came up with today for running errands ... which didn't actually happen because O ended up being super sick and just wanting to lay on the couch all day. I caught up on all my recorded shows and enjoyed the snuggles, but my poor little man was not himself! Hopefully tomorrow he will be back up and running.

Outfit Details:

Floral Pants - GAP

Cable Knit Sweater - Bluenotes 

Jean Jacket - Old Navy

Boots - Payless 

These boots are my amazing find of the season - I usually can't wear riding boots because of my calves. I wouldn't say they're big but they don't fit into most boots. These gems from Payless are "extended calf" - I can wear tall boots with a zipper AND still have room for boot socks! Dream = fulfilled. 

Bonus: I could even wear this in the snow and not be frozen (yet)! 

freezer cooking with Sharmane {in someone else's kitchen}

I've been pinning ideas for a while now for this whole freezer crock-pot cooking craze and really wanting to try it. I only have the freezer on top of our fridge for space, so I knew I couldn't go crazy (like this lady) but I wanted to have a few meals on hand for those days when I just can't my creative juices flowing to come up with supper. I meal-plan but sometimes, when that runs out and I'm left with random things in my pantry and fridge ... supper comes up short. So these are my "back-pocket" meals, if you will.

{Side note: isn't it weird that I can start out by talking about "pinning" things and you all know what I'm talking about? If this were two years ago, everyone would imagine me using a cork board and actual push pins. It's just strange how things evolve.}

Karlie had posted that she had done a big freezer meal cooking day and both Sharmane and I commented on her picture that we wanted to do that! DESTINY. We decided to get together this week and just do a big day of prep to have freezer meals on hand. We only did seven recipes but it took all afternoon on Friday.

Here's what we made:

If you look closely, you'll see our grocery bill was only $111.90. We already had some of the meat on-hand.
Sharmane provided chicken, prawns & turkey sausage and I supplied the beef. Well. J's family farm provided it.
So, that cut down our costs A LOT.

All our recipes were from either Six Sisters Stuff or Loving My Nest.

I went grocery shopping the night before and we used Sharmane's kitchen to work in. We decided to tackle it recipe-by-recipe in terms of what we were chopping and prepping. Some recipes require meat to be cooked before hand and others allow you to put it in the bags raw. It worked well for us to do it this way, but we only doubled our recipes. If you were tripling or anything crazy like that, you may want to do all your chopping & cooking first, then start bagging things. But - I think it's totally a personal preference thing.

Turns out that even with only seven meals, my fridge and freezer are full so I will be making most of the recipes this week, intermingled with my meal plan that I made up before deciding to do this. Two weeks of meals and only one day of prep for half of them! YES.

We decided that we will definitely do this again, although I will have to plan better for freezer space. I actually want to freeze them so I can use them in a pinch!

Have you done freezer crock-pot cooking at all? Tips? Tricks? I'd love to hear!