Author Archives: Caitlin

What We Ate…Sunday?

*Every Wednesday I write a blog post with all of the vegetarian dinners we ate this week!*

You’d think by now I would have the hang of it. But I sat up in bed last night because I suddenly remembered I had never done my WWAW post! Sheesh! Well, sorry it is late but here you go!

Wednesday: Black Beans, Rice and Mexican Chopped Salad

I have been wanting to try these beans for a while! My friend Lacey recommended them and they were soooo good! We served them with rice and a little shredded cheese. They made a bunch so we had them for leftovers for days! I also made this southwestern chopped salad that I love!! Rather than making the dressing, I just bought the cilantro dressing from Trader Joe’s. Obviously I left off the black beans, since that would have been a little weird given our main dish.

Thursday: Black Bean and Butternut Squash Enchiladas

I got this recipe from my friend Erin who has recently started making Meatless Monday dinners. Yay Erin!! She warned me that it was spicy, so I didn’t add the jalapeno but it was still spicy! We all really liked it, but you may want to go with the mild rotel if you don’t like spicy.

Friday: Date Night

Ben took me out for dinner and a play in Shirlington. So fun! We got to try out Copperwood Tavern which was delicious. We split a salad and I had sides for dinner: oysers, mac and cheese, and brussels sprouts. Yum!

Saturday: District Taco

We decided last minute to have dinner at District Taco because I realized I didn’t have the right ingredients for what I wanted to make. Oops!

Sunday: Spaghetti

We made spaghetti with tomato sauce and meatless crumbles from Trader Joe’s and some garlic bread.

Monday: Wild Mushroom Pizza with Caramelized Onions, Fontina, and Rosemary

This recipe was really good but really rich!! I think it could probably be made with fewer onions to make it a little less rich. I would also do something different with the mushrooms next time, as they ended up really watery and I had to drain them. But the pizza really was delicious, promise!

Tuesday: Minnesota Wild Rice Soup

I decided to make this soup after seeing my Uncle Brian mention Wild Rice Soup on Facebook! Ha! Even though half my family is from Minnesota, I had never made this soup before. It was delicious, but richer than I was expecting. I was not picturing a creamy soup for some reason. So if you are looking for a wintery, delicious soup, try this!

Pinteresting Ideas

Now that we aren’t watching TV on weekdays, I have been trying to come up with more fun activities that the kids can do in the afternoons. They love to help me cook and they are also pretty good at finding fun games to play together. But in the past few weeks, I came up with a few more “organized” activities that they both loved, so I thought I would share. Of course, they are all from Pinterest!

Baking Soda and Vinegar Art:

For this project, just dump a bunch of baking soda in a shallow dish and give the kids a cup for of vinegar (tinted with food coloring) and some eye droppers. The kids can drop the vinegar into the baking soda to make beautiful fizzy designs. This was fun for Sam and Campbell and then they decided it would be more fun to pour all the vinegar in and mix it with their hands, which was fine with me. But it did create quite a mess!

Car Wash:

This one is super easy to set up! Just fill a baking dish (or bowl) with soapy water and give the kids toy cars to wash. You’ll also want to give them some scrub brushes and washcloths to make it more exciting and a towel to dry them off once they are clean. I just set them up on a towel to minimize the clean up.

Frozen Animal Rescue:

This one definitely requires more prep work, but it was worth it! I ordered some ocean animals from Amazon because we didn’t have any and I figured the kids could play with them after this project. But you could definitely use any plastic figurines you already have. To do this, you need to freeze the objects in layers in a bowl, so I just put a little water in a big bowl with some animals. Once that froze, I added a few more animals and some more water, etc. I think I did 3 or 4 “layers” of water. Then I just dumped the frozen bowl into a dishpan (from the dollar store) and gave the kids squirt bottles full of lukewarm water tinted with food coloring, some salt, and spoons to chip at the ice. The squirt bottles are from Amazon (you can get them at the dollar store during the summer) but you could also use empty glue bottles. I put a disposable plastic table cloth under the towels to prevent the floor from getting completely water logged. The kids had so much fun and worked on this for over an hour! Sam got a little frustrated that it took so long to get the first animal out, but of course it went faster once the ice started melting and had lots of fun!

WWAW 2

*Every Wednesday I write a blog post with all of the vegetarian dinners we ate this week!*

And here is this past week’s menu.

Wednesday: Pimento Grilled Cheese and Baked Sweet Potatoes

Love these pimento grilled cheese sandwiches and the baked sweet potatoes made me feel like this meal wasn’t THAT unhealthy!

Thursday: Leftovers

We had a lot of soups and sandwich-makings left over so we had those for dinner.

Friday: My Birthday Dinner!

Ok, I normally don’t mention meals other than dinner on these posts, but I do have to say that Ben made me the most delicious birthday breakfast! He is the breakfast guy in our house, and one of my favorite things he makes is a dutch baby pancake. So for my birthday he made this gingerbread spice dutch baby pancake. It was AMAZING!

We normally don’t love going out to dinner on my actual birthday because Valentine’s Day is an awful night for dining out. But the fast few years we’ve decided that it is fun to go to less traditional restaurants. We picked a South American restaurant that we love, La Caraquena, figuring it wouldn’t be a real Valentine hot spot. They did have balloons and streamers up, but no prix fixe menu and no rows of 2 top tables lined up to accommodate as many valentines as possible.

Saturday: Oyamel

For my family birthday dinner, we took the kids to Oyamel, my favoritest restaurant in the whole world! We got queso fundido, brussels sprouts, tuna ceviche (I normally don’t eat fish but made an exception for my birthday), guacamole, nopales (on Sam’s direction, not my fave), papas al mole, and margaritas.

Sunday: Garlic Roasted Mushrooms and Manchego Toast

These mushrooms were freaking fantastic! I think next time I would serve them with a simple pasta, maybe a cacio e pepe, just to be a little more filling. But you’ll definitely want to serve them with bread too, to sop up all the juices. Ben made some delicious bread, tomato, and manchego toast, inspired by one of our favorite dishes from Jaleo, pan con tomate y queso manchego.

Monday: Kale and Scrambled Eggs

This recipe may sound a little odd but it was SO good–like I could have at the whole thing in one sitting good! Ben made some scrambled eggs to go with it and we also had bread.

Tuesday: Fried Chickpea Pitas

These were very simple to make and really good. I think Ben had 4 of them and Sam went back for seconds! I highly recommend!

WWAW 1

*Every Wednesday I write a blog post with all of the vegetarian dinners we ate this week!*

Um, whoops! I forgot to do WWAW for last week. Rather than do them both in one LONG post, I decided to do last week’s WWAW first and then post this weeks. Enjoy.

Wednesday: Basketball Food

We went to see the Spurs play the Wizards and didn’t have time to grab dinner beforehand so we had to grab dinner there. I didn’t have high hopes but was pleasantly surprised with our dinner. The barbecue concession stand had a vegan Sloppy Joe (they called it a Sloppy Jane which I found mildly offensive–boys can be vegans too!) and the best macaroni and cheese I think I have ever had!

Thursday: Birthday Dinner for Campbell

I tried to make a dinner I knew Campbell would like, and with a little help from Sam, settled on cheese pizza (crust, tomato sauce and shredded cheese from Trader Joe’s), a Caesar salad, and roasted broccoli–Campbell’s favorite.

Friday: Macaroni and Cheese

I made my Grandma’s mac and cheese with cherry tomatoes on the side. Yummy!

Saturday: Palestinian Dinner Out

We went to one of our new favorite restaurants, Jerusalem. We got a bunch of yummy vegetarian foods.

Sunday: Chinese Take-Out

Grandma Judi got take-out from our favorite Chinese restaurant, Hong Kong Palace! We got homestyle bean curd (tofu), mapo tofu, garlic spinach, spicy garlic eggplant, and golden corn.

Monday: Corn and Chipotle Chowder and Quesadillas

I made this soup and sandwich combo from the Williams-Sonoma catalog of all places. It was delicious! Again, I skipped the bacon–totally unnecessary! And you could definitely make either the soup or the sandwich on their own and have a nice meal (together they are kind of a lot of work for a week night!)

Tuesday: Corn and Chipotle Chowder

This is one of my favorite soups and I hadn’t made it in a while. I only use half of a chipotle chile (it calls for 2) and that is plenty spicy for me. And I like things spicy, so be careful! Also, I obviously skipped the bacon. The recipe calls for TWO CUPS of cream and a sprinkling of feta (or queso fresco) so I am quite certain it is rich and salty enough without the bacon! I also made quesadillas with fresh corn tortillas

Campbell at TWO

Here is a snapshot of Campbell at 2 years old. She is such a fun little girl and we just love love love her to pieces. I literally forgot about making her two year old appointment with the pediatrician until I started writing this post, so I don’t have her height and weight stats (bad mommy!) but I will update with those soon.

Talking up a storm: Campbell’s language has exploded lately! She is talking in full sentences and is constantly using words we didn’t know she knew. It is so fun to watch!

Loves books: She loves reading and being read to. If anyone starts reading a book, she runs over and snuggles up to listen. Now we just need to get Sam ready to read books to her!

Sweets lover: Campbell is an ok eater but she really loves sweets. She is definitely in a stage where her appetite waxes and wanes, but she always has room for dessert. Her favorite is hot cocoa–hence the birthday party theme! One of her funny quirks is that she always licks her food: licks peanut butter off toast, frosting off cupcakes, etc.

Snuggler: She is still such a snuggly girl!! We love it!

Likes to dance: She is still dancing, but has added some new moves! Here she is dancing in her high chair after eating some Chinese take-out.

Loves bows and tutus and princesses and tea parties: Loving bows is nothing new (she got some bigger ones as a birthday present) but she is getting more and more into all things girly. I am trying to keep it in check since I know pretty soon she will be obsessed with all that stuff but it is pretty cute to see her growing into a little girl. Of course, she still loves playing with all of Sam’s toys too!

Saw her first movie: Over Christmas we took Campbell (and Sam and cousin Ella) to see Frozen and she loved it! I wasn’t sure how she would do in a movie theater but she was mostly entertained and when she got bored, I could distract her with some cheese fries. She has been singing “Let It Gooooo” ever since.

Polite: She is really into saying “please,” “thank you” (or “tanks”), “you’re welcome,” and “sorry.” It is pretty funny to have a conversation with her–she will find a way to use each of those words at least once.

May be read to potty train: She will very reliably tell us when she has peed or pooped and asks us to change her diaper. She also likes to tell us “I need to go potty!” especially if Sam is going potty. However, I am not really ready to go down that road, so hopefully she’ll still be ready in a few months.

Really goofy: She is the silliest little thing and is always cracking us up. She especially likes to make Sam laugh and the two of them will really get going. She has two totally fake laughs–one that sounds kind of like Ernie from Sesame Street and another that is kind of a deep chortle. Silly silly girl.

Likes to do things by herself: She’s definitely getting into the independent stage. One of her favorite sayings is “I do!” She likes to do lots of things for herself–getting dressed, brushing teeth, buckling up, etc.–even though she often can’t complete the task on her own. It can be a little frustrating at times, but having been through this with Sam, it is easier to let it slide since I know the stage passes on its own.

Mostly easy: We are constantly remarking on what an easy child Campbell is. She is mostly happy and even when she isn’t, she is usually pretty easy to cheer up. When she is sick, she just gets more snuggly, not crabby. And she mostly complies quickly when we tell her not to do something. It is really pretty amazing. She has definitely had more “two” moments lately, but a lot of them just make us laugh. She’s picked up some of Sam’s 4 year old sass and likes to say, in a sassy voice, “sorry, no!” when she doesn’t want to do something. I know there will be ups and downs ahead but we are so grateful for what an easy little girl she is.

Campbell’s Hot Cocoa Picnic

For Campbell’s second birthday, we had a hot cocoa picnic. Well, it wasn’t a real picnic since it was indoors and the girls sat at the table, but it was still pretty cute! We kept the guest list very small this year–just two little friends of Campbell’s and one older sister (one of Sam’s best buddies).

Each guest got a customized espresso mug, hand lettered by my talented friend Sarah Bohl (they were the perfect sipping size for little hands).

Ben made delicious hot cocoa and we also had some yummy toppings: marshmallows, mini chocolate chips, and rainbow jimmies.

I made these cute little cupcakes that looked like cups of hot cocoa (kind of).

And Judi and I made tea sandwiches (but forgot to get pics of all of them). Pictured: cucumber & cream cheese, pesto, red pepper, & goat cheese, and pimento cheese. Not pictured, but cut into cute little shapes: PB&J, Nutella & banana, and apple and cheddar.

photo (1)

The mommies and daughters (minus one of Campbell’s friends who was sick!):

Campbell didn’t want to stop playing to eat.

But cheered up with a little hot cocoa!

Sweet friends:

The cool older siblings (who were truly on there best behavior!! So sweet!):

The birthday girl!! I think she’s wondering when she can stop posing for pictures and start eating her cupcake!

Happy Birthday to You, Campbell!

It is hard to believe that this was just two years ago!!

I will do a full update post soon, when I have more energy, but I just had to wish a happy birthday to our amazing little girl. She is such a joy and we all love her to pieces. Happy second birthday, sweet girl!!

WWAW

*Every Wednesday I write a blog post with all of the vegetarian dinners we ate this week!*

Well we are done with our month long vegan challenge. Although it was a struggle to stay vegan when we were out to eat, I really enjoyed making a vegan dinner almost every night. I normally try to have at least one vegan meal every week, but now maybe it’ll be easy to incorporate a couple more. I do have to say though, that I may be the first person in the history of the world to gain weight on a vegan diet. WTF?

WEEK ONE:

Wednesday: Chili

We made a delicious veggie chili that my mom sent. One of her friends won a chili cook off with the recipe! What I liked the most about it was the roasted sweet potatoes. Unfortunately I don’t have a link but I will try to type it up soon.

Thursday: Rice and Beans and Brussels Sprouts

I made this dish, but without the turkey. It was pretty good, but a little monotonous. The roasted brussels sprouts were delish!

Friday: Quinoa Salad, Corn Tortillas, Roasted Sweet Potatoes

We all LOVE this quinoa salad. I served it with corn tortillas and roasted sweet potatoes (seasoned with cayenne and roasted paprika).

Saturday: Potato Curry and Dosas

We made this delicious Indian dinner from a recipe from my friend Puja’s amazing blog! It was delish, but I need a little more practice on perfecting my dosas, which are basically Indian crepes.

Sunday: Quesadillas, Guac, and Chicken-less Buffalo Dip

For the superbowl, we had quesadillas with homemade corn tortillas (made by Ben) and what I call my “poor man’s guacamole” which is just avocados, lime juice, salt, and garlic powder. Though I should probably call it my lazy man’s guacamole, since the avocados aren’t cheap! I also made my friend Alison’s yummy buffalo chicken dip, without the chicken. She makes it a lot for parties and always makes a little chicken-free batch for me and it’s so good!!!

Monday: Sweet Potato Wraps

I made these again but this time I roasted the sweet potatoes instead of steaming and pureeing them and I liked it even better! I also made fresh flour tortillas, which is obviously better (you might be guessing how I gained weight on this vegan diet…)

Tuesday: Crock Pot Tomato Soup

This was really yummy but too rich. I think next time I would use half as much half and half. I also made yummy garlic bread to go with it.

Teddy Bear Tea

I was going through some old pictures on my phone and realized I never posted about the very special Christmas event my sister Nikki and I took our girls to a few days before Christmas: The Teddy Bear Tea at the Ritz.

We were greeted by teddy bears!

Then got to decorate cookies.

And fill up candy bags.

Then we sat down at our tables and waited patiently for hot cocoa and goodies.

Santa briefly made the rounds (don’t worry, he comes back).

And then Mrs. Claus read stories to all the kids

While the grown ups enjoyed their sweets and champagne.

Afterwards we tried to get some pics of Campbell and Ella.

And then the girls finally got to sit on Santa’s lap! Pretty cool that the Ritz was able to book the REAL Santa!

WWAW 2: Electric Boogaloo

*Every Wednesday I write a blog post with all of the vegetarian (or vegan!) dinners we ate this week!*

I was so late with last week’s WWAW post, that I just decided to combine two week’s worth of dinners! Hopefully it’s not too long to read.

WEEK ONE:

Wednesday: Fried Rice

This is a nice easy dinner. I just marinate extra firm tofu, cut into cubes, in soy sauce and then fry it up in a non-stick pan over medium high heat until it’s crisp on all sides. Then I fry a little cooked brown rice in a skillet with oil, add frozen veggies, and season with more soy sauce. I normally add a scrambled egg, but I skipped that this time and it was still great!

Thursday: Dinner Club

I love my neighborhood MOMS club’s dinner club. Each month the host picks a theme and everyone brings a dish. This month’s theme was salads, which was really fun and relatively healthy! I brought my curried couscous salad. I made pasta and TJ’s meatless meatballs for Ben and the kids.

Friday: Dinner with Dad

My dad was in town so we went out for dinner with the kids at Rustico. Kind of embarrassed to admit that we got the exact same pizzas I got the week before at my girls’ dinner. They were so good!

Saturday: Indian Food

After a long day with cranky kids, we decided it was in everyone’s best interest to get take out.

Sunday: Cilantro Pesto Tacos

This was another recipe from Thug Kitchen (expletive warning!). It was really good, but I should have cooked the beans more. I normally like to heat them in a pot with a little water and some seasonings but i just heated these in the microwave and then mixed them with the pesto, so they were too dry.

Monday: Caramelized Tofu

Ben’s former colleague now has an awesome Indian Food Blog. She recommended this recipe to me when I asked her for some good vegan dinners. This was really good! We all loved it!

Tuesday: Roasted Buddha Bowl

I thought this was really good, and the kids seemed to enjoy it, but it was pretty light. Ben said it seemed like “spa food.” If I make it again, I will pair it with a soup or just make a lot more of it.

WEEK TWO:

Wednesday: Birthday Dinner 1

We tried out a new Mexican restaurant for Ben’s birthday and it was no bueno. We were excited when we started with the chips and salsa, which were fantastico. But the rest of the food was really bad. Plus they had obvious Spanish mistakes on their menu. I don’t want to slam them on my blog, but if you want to know where to avoid, send me an email and I will tell you!

Thursday: Birthday Dinner 2

As you may remember, Ben and I agreed that his birthday dinner would be exempt from our vegan month. I asked Ben what he wanted me to make for his dinner and this is what he picked. Really good, but I did have a bit of a stomach ache after eating such rich food! Pasta with pesto cream, garlic bread, caesar salad, and tiramisu

Friday: Birthday Dinner 3

I surprised Ben with one more special birthday dinner at Elizabeth’s Gone Raw, after reading an article listing it as one of DC’s most innovative restaurants (thanks for sending the article, Nicole!). It was such a cool experience and I would highly recommend it! We’d never had “raw” food before and it is very impressive to see what they can do without really cooking. Ben and I both LOVED the “ceviche.”

Saturday: Coconut Lentil Soup

This was pretty good, but not really my food-style, if that makes any sense. The kids liked it though!

Sunday: Leftovers

Hooray for leftovers.

Monday: Salt and Pepper Tofu and Gingered Sweet Potatoes

Yum, yum, yum, yum. I love this salt and pepper tofu recipe, and was really happy with this ginger and sweet potato salad recipe that I had never made before. Highly recommend it. We also had rice.

Tuesday: Chinese Food

Decided to get take-out Chinese, just because I didn’t feel like eating what we had planned. I am not sure if it was completely vegan, but it was certainly not high in dairy. We got spicy cold noodles, sauteed spinach with garlic, garlic eggplant, homestyle tofu, and ma po tofu. Yum! And the kids LOVE Chinese!