Tuesday, September 24, 2013

It's Soup Season!

For those of you who went to our wedding, you should know that Fall is my favorite season! The changing colors, the lower temperature, the pumpkin-scented everything, and best of all...soup! Soup is seriously the best thing in the world, and once fall hits, it is acceptable to pull out the recipes again! I am going to share a few of my favorites:

Comforting Chicken Noodle Soup

The nice thing about this recipe, other than its simplicity, is that it can be made so many different ways. You can add veggies to it if you'd like (I usually add carrots, celery and onion), you can make it with however much sour cream you want, or you can make it with or without chicken. It is seriously my favorite!! This is originally from the Taste of Home Big Book of Soup.

2 Quarts Water
8 chicken bouillon cubes
6 ½ cups uncooked wide egg noodles
2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup
3 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 cup sour cream (I usually only put in a few spoonfuls)
Minced fresh parsley

In a large saucepan, bring water and bouillon to a boil. Add noodles; cook, uncovered, until tender, about 10 minutes. Do not drain.
Add soup and chicken; heat through. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream. Sprinkle with parsley.

Perfection!

Wild Rice Soup
This is a family recipe that is always a big hit! I always add ham to it, and skip the almonds!

2 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup flour
4 cups chicken broth
1 Tbsp minced onion
2 cups cooked wild rice
½ tsp salt
1 cup half-and-half

Options to add:
1/3 cup chopped ham or chicken
1/3 cup grated carrots
3 Tbsp slivered almonds

Melt butter in large pot, saute onion. Blend in flour; gradually add broth. Cook, stirring frequently, until mixture thickens slightly. Stir in rice, salt, and options. Simmer 5 minutes. Blend in half-and-half. Heat to serving temp. 
 
Yummy!!!

Monday, September 23, 2013

Just a quick pic...

Now that I have a job (I work mostly weekends), Chad is finding out what it's like when I'm at home with Emily- and he's finding out that it's not as easy as it seems! I came home on Saturday from work to this:
Just to be clear, this is Emily, passed out on the floor, with a poopy diaper, holding a Laffy Taffy, wearing a Vikings jersey. Just thought I would share this amazing parenting feat.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Emily's Birthday Celebrations!

Wow...happy birthday Emily! We had quite the turnout for both birthday parties last weekend! The first party, on Chad's side of the family, was held at the lake cabin. We had a pretty decent turnout, even though almost everyone had to travel and that it was pouring rain all day. Emily got lots of presents (of course!), but she had the most fun with the chair Grandma got her! The funny thing is, is that both grandmas got her a chair! We decided to keep both of them; one for her room and one for the living room. They now know to communicate in regards to presents!
Ahhh, then the cake smash came along! She got a cake all to herself. She was a little unsure of herself at first, but she got the hang of it pretty quick!
(Please ignore the beer bottles in the background!)
The damage done! (Notice it's almost all frosting gone but no cake!)


On to the second party. Emily was a little tired out from the cabin, but she still did a good job.  Once again, she got lots of presents, and she had so much fun (maybe a little too much!!!) 

Lesa and our newest member to the family- Chris and Lacey's son Carter!
Emy and my cousin's son Wyatt-obviously transfixed on an awesome toy!

Emily at the end of the party- it was a weekend full of parties, sugar and family! I'd be tired too!!!
After we got back home, Emily was sick for 3 days- she was crabby, tired, wasn't eating, and ran a fever. She seems to be almost back to normal now. Poor baby!






Friday, September 13, 2013

Happy Birthday Emily!!!!

Just one short year ago, our precious baby girl was born. What a blessing. We have a fun-filled weekend for her! She gets to have 2 birthday parties (one of which is at the cabin, probably her favorite place as far as we can tell), gets to smash 2 cakes, and gets to see all of her favorite people! (except Auntie Jess and Uncle Eric, but we'll have a special birthday party just for them!) Here is the picture I took at the exact moment 1 year ago that she was born:
As you can see, she is completely thrilled about having a hat on her head ;)
Now if you'll excuse me, I have a poopie diaper to change...

Thursday, September 12, 2013

It's the Little Victories...

As a mostly-stay-at-home mom, I have found that sometimes I focus on arbitrary things in order to pass the time. (Chad would say that I do this to get out of cleaning the house, but still...) We live in a complex of 12 townhomes that share a U-shaped driveway. On garbage day, we each put out our respective garbage bins and bring them in at the end of the day. One family moved out at the beginning of June, but forgot to call the garbage company to have them pick up the bin. In June. As in 3 months ago (see what I mean....arbitrary things!!) In early August, I was talking to my neighbor Jim and he said that he had called the garbage company to have them pick up the bin. Hallelujah! But when the guy came, he sat there for a few minutes looking at the bin and then drove away. We called to see what happened, and the guy said he didn't have "authorization" to pick up the bin because he didn't know for sure if that was the correct one. What!!?? It is the only one out there...what are the other choices?!  So then I called the company, and they assured me that it will be picked up the following Monday. Same thing...the guy drove buy without picking it up. This continued on for countless weeks. Finally, I got the landlord involved and he said he'd take care of it. Even though he called too, nothing happened. So, last week, I called yet again and got quite..umm..stern with them about what a waste of time it is for them to come every week yet not pick up the trash. They told me to put the bin in front of my unit and they'll pick it up. OK..... This morning, at 7am, I heard the truck come by yet again. I jumped up and ran outside as fast as I could. After some coaxing (and a little threatening), he FINALLY picked up the bin!! Like I said, it's the little victories.

Monday, September 2, 2013

Jessica is a married woman!

Sorry to start off my post on a sad note, but I promise it will get better! My sweet 8-year-old cousin George passed away in his sleep on Friday night. It had almost been a year since his heart surgery. I am happy that he is no longer in pain, but my heart hurts for his family. It was a difficult weekend, but I had to put on a happy face for my sister-in-law Jessica's wedding. He was always such a joy to be around when I was a nanny for him and his brother and sister, and I know that he touched so many lives. For more info, visit his CaringBridge site: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/georgelagerstrom
     Like I said, Jessica got married this weekend. What a beautiful and fun wedding! They had the ceremony at the Arboretum and then had a boat cruise on Lake Minnetonka for the reception. The weather cooled down for them, thankfully, the ceremony was beautiful. Chad and I were both in the wedding, so we appointed Chad's aunt Lori to take care of Emily during the ceremony. About 5 minutes in, we heard Emily crying, followed by Lori taking her away. Lori and Emily watched the rest of the ceremony from afar, but Emily did pretty good! Despite a few hiccups, (including the flower girls basically dumping their flowers during the first 10-20 feet of the aisle, and then proclaiming, "I'm out of flowers!!") everything went wonderfully. Then we got on the bus to board the Bella Vista, the biggest boat on Lake Minnetonka. The dinner easily flowed into the dance, and the rest of the night went quickly. They docked at 9pm to drop off the "early-to-beds" and I dropped off Emily with my parents. We then re-boarded and enjoyed a baby-free night!

All in all, it was a happy/sad weekend. Congratulations to Eric and Jessica!!