Hey good lookin.....Whatcha got cookin?

Last night I made grilled salmon, bacon & feta packets and they were delish. It is a Take 5 recipe from the Rachel Ray magazine ... the entire dish is made using only 5 ingredients, not counting olive oil, salt and pepper. And yes, the bebe sits on the table while we eat. That way we can talk to her during dinner, plus we both get to eat at the same time.

RECIPE

Four 6-ounce, 1-inch-thick salmon fillets, skin on and at room temperature
1/2 cup ranch dressing
3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (I used Canadian bacon... much less fat)
1/4 crumbled feta cheese
2 tomatoes, chopped

DIRECTIONS
Preheat a grill to high. Cut four 8-by-12-inch sheets of heavy-duty foil. Place each salmon fillet skin side down on a sheet; top each with 2 tablespoons ranch dressing, 1 tablespoon bacon and 1 tablespoon feta; season with pepper. Fold up the sides of the foil, leaving the top exposed. Place on the grill, cover and cook until almost opaque in the thickest part, 8 to 10 minutes. Serve topped with the tomatoes. (I cooked the packets with the tomatoes, versus adding them at the end)

Latisse - Before

Every time Brooke Shields comes on TV talking about 'longer, fuller lashes...' I get excited. I am a complete mascara junkie, so Latisse was right up my alley. Pretty in Pink Megan has been using it for a while now and she has had great results, so I had to try it. My optometrist wrote me a script for it yesterday and last night was my first time using it.

Here are my before shots:

If my lashes grow according to this chart -- WOW! That would be crazy long and I would love it.

It is really easy to use... you just put a drop on the wand and brush it over your lash line.

Looking at these pictures makes me realize how I need to go get my brows waxed.... looks like I know what I will be doing during lunch.

I am going to post updates weekly.

Car seat advice

We found out over the weekend that our Maxi Cosi infant car seat has been recalled (UGH!) so now we are on the hunt for a new convertible car seat. I am thinking of going with either the Britax Roundabout or Britax Marathon. Have you used either one? Thoughts / opinions?

My main question is regarding the maximum weight capacity. The Marathon goes up to 65 lbs, vs 40 on the Roundabout. Did your child complain about sitting in a "baby chair" once they got a little older? Should we just go with the Roundabout and then get a different booster once she gets past 40 lbs? OR should we just buy the Marathon and have that last for a couple years longer?

In the middle of the night

Have you ever walked around your house (or apt.) in the middle of the night? In my opinion, everything seems just a little bit creepy. I am not a scared or fearful person, but whenever I am up with Baby M during the night I find my mind going to crazy places. Such as:

• Why is the cat sitting in the window by the front door? Is he looking at something (or someone)??
• Why did our sensor light just come on?
• Would I be able to jump over our fence with the baby in case there was a home invasion?
• Would I be able to fight back or would I just freeze?
• How fast can I dial 911?
• How fast can I run barefoot?

And then there are the other things that go through my head:

• I wonder what the living room would look like painted _____.
• I need to hang _______.
• Is that a possum walking along our fence?
• I hope our tree does not fall thru the neighbor’s window during the next storm.
• I need to clip some basil for my next batch of pesto.
• What other names sound good with Baby M? (NOT Pregnant. Remember, it is the middle of the night and I think crazy things)

In order to get my mind off the crazy train, I now think of positive things. Like, planning her 1st birthday party….. which is about 8 months away. Some might call that crazy as well.

I wonder...

Do you think celebrities keep the pictures from their photo shoots? Specifically, Tori Spelling and family seem to do a lot of family photo shoots and they usually have really cute pictures.

I love watching Tori & Dean... they seem like they would be a lot of fun to hang out with.

30 Day Shred

I started the 30 Day Shred this week in hopes of being super skinny and hot by the time we baptise Miss A. (I am not going to stand up in front of the entire church still looking chubby and flabby. Yes, I am vain enough to admit to these things)

After 4 days of Level 1, I am feeling good. There are a couple of questions I have for Jillian...

• What is that tattoo on your ankle?
• Why do you rave over the blonde's abs? You my dear have killer abs.
• Why are you not wearing cuter workout clothes? I also sometimes wear rolled waist sweatpants, but then again I don't have my own workout video.
• Why do I feel like such a goober during the punching section of cardio? My right side is decent, but I am a fool on my left side.

Anyone else doing The Shred? How are the other levels?

Birth Announcement

This is a long overdue post, but below are what the Baby M birth announcements looked like:

Simple Boatman Geller photo cards with her info printed on the inside. I liked this because those who want to frame her pic can just take the photo off the front of the announcement.

Vacation Recap

We are back from our fab beach vacation and now it is time to do the fun stuff, like unpack and laundry.

Overall, it was a great trip. Mix in a little rain, a trip to the hospital, and a 100 year old house and it made for our normal summer vacation. One highlight of the week was dinner at Lady and Sons! I hardly ate anything that day because I wanted to have plenty of room for the butter filled food.

I started off with a southern belle martini.

Then we all had cheese biscuits and hoe cakes.

The majority of the table had the buffet, but someone ordered the chicken pot pie and another had a fish dish. (Both were delish... I tasted both) I sampled almost everything on the buffet... fried chicken, mashed potatoes, mac n cheese, green beans, and another veggie casserole.

And for dessert there was peach cobbler.

I loved everything except the cobbler. Maybe that was because my stomach was already full with other savory goodness. My favorite items of the night were the cheese biscuits, mac n cheese and green beans.

More vacation pictures are posted on the private Baby M blog.