Mommy metamorphosis

I'll bet that from this first picture you'll be able to guess what this Metamorphosis Monday post is about! So this one is about the baby - stay tuned for the one about me after a few more trips to the gym! Many thanks to Susan at http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com for hosting! Head over there to see many more amazing transformations!

So this is quite obviously the before. . . . 8 months along.

Gathering these photos for this post I was really surprised by how much my other two have grown up as well. Tempus fugit, tempus fugit no?

Here is the AFTER!!! This is day 2, still at the hospital.And here is right now, he's now 18 months old and starting to talk! It's just the cutest age, but then again, I think that about each kid, and I thought the same thing last month!!
Here are the other two - they've grown so much in the past two years.

Here's just one last one for fun! How many of us did this to our cats when we were younger? This is Shasta, he's the youngest of our three cats, he came into the house as a kitten while we already had two of the kids and I think it makes a big difference in his "tolerance for play" level!

Thanks for stopping by, make sure to visit Susan and all the other transformations at

Not just for salads. . .

So here I am, so excited to share a Foodie Friday blog with you! This is a great meme, hosted at designs by Gollum! Head on over using the link on my page and check out the other recipes everyone has shared!

Looking below you're thinking SALAD right? NOPE!! I'ts braised radishes! Quick, easy and really, really delicious. We belong to a CSA (community supported agriculture) which is what a co-op used to be. Every week we get our share of hydroponic, organically grown produce. We are in South Florida, so the growing season is October through May. This week we got some huge, beautiful red-top radishes and I just couldn't imagine eating that much salad so I tried something new.
I cut up the radishes, added garlic, black pepper and a little chicken broth and let them cook until tender. About 8 minutes.
I chopped the greens and added them last on top.
As they wilted I mixed it all together and splashed liberally with vinegar. I grabbed the first one in my cupboard which seriously happened to be this lovely champagne vinegar from a cooking lesson/gourmet restaurant & store in Natchez, Mississippi called High Cotton.
Here's the finished dish: It was really very tasty, I ate several spoonfuls before setting aside to join the rest of the meal! (in case you want to know it was chicken cacciatore with baby bell peppers- also a CSA item).
Thanks for visiting, I hope you try this dish, it was surprisingly easy and very unique!

The furriest Bee

Hello! Here's my contribution to PINK Saturday, hosted by Beverly! Head on over and check out all the pink posts! There's always so many fun things to see!

Below is a picture that I took at Walt Disney World in Orlando, just outside the Small World ride! It's a very, very furry bumblebee! I'm posting this because, well, the flowers are pink, and also because I have been a busy, busy bee myself lately.

Just the past couple of weeks I am working again, for the first time since my oldest (who's 4) was born. It's great fun and I love what I do, but it takes so much arranging, making sure the kids are getting picked up, and watched and well. . . you know! I'm only working very part time, but it's still a lot of planning.

I don't know what these flowers are called. . . do you? This bee was so cute, he was really very furry, I wanted so much to pet him! My husband says that even the cute ones sting! Do furry bees like this sting? I guess so, people would probably keep them for pets if they didn't right?
So, hello to everyone and I hope your Saturday goes beautifully!

Hello fellow Foodies! Thanks to Gollum for hosting this spectacular meme. Check out her beautiful blog and see the other Foodie Friday contributors at http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com.

Here's my contribution - pretty quick, just want to join in today! It's roasted root vegetables a Christmas eve tradition at our place.
So this year it's turnips, sweet potato, leeks, brussels sprouts, carrots beets & butternut squash ( which I acknowledge is not a root vegetable, but they were cubed at the store so I added them!)
I do the beets separately and add them at the end so they don't color everything, also the leeks & brussels sprouts are separate because they just don't take as long!

Merry Merry Christmas, I'm off to go play Santa - my monkeys are getting a pink tricycle and a very first two wheeler! Gotta put them out!

Sea tree & outdoor table. . .Merry Christmas from Florida!!

Hello, and I hope all of you are having a nice time with family and friends and not too crazy cooking! Today, while Christmas Eve, is also Tablescape Thursday! It's hosted by Susan at http://betweenapsontheporch.blogger.com, so head on over and check out the other lovely tables.

Here is my contribution: It's a night before Christmas eve outdoor table, set becaus the inside was already set for Christmas Eve. We had grilled shrimp and chicken, and it was very simple! It's still quite warm here, so it was nice to be able to use this table!
I used a variety of polish pottery plates and some lovely cloth covered napkin rings that I found at a thrift store in town.
See the pretty red tulips? They are doubling on my table for Christmas day, so look for them again!

Here's quick peek at my "Sea tree" It's a tabletop tree with an ocean theme. I made the shells myself following a project from December's Martha Stewart! It was lots of fun, and I think they came out cute don't you?

I hope you enjoyed this relatively quick post, as you can see, my photo skills are slowly improving! I hope to figure out how to get a mosaic/collage onto my title soon! I have a mac so if anyone has any hints I'd love them!

Warmest wishes for a wonderful Christmas!!

A real difference

Hi- thanks for coming by again, I'm sharing the first of an ongoing series that I will post for many Metamorphosis Mondays. They're hosted by Susan at http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com, head on over to check out all the big and little changes we've all shared!

Below is a photo of the dining room at our new house as it was when we bought it.

And now, here it is in it's almost current state, although these photos were taken pre-holiday decorating. It's a shame you can't see the new chandelier we put up, ah well, a view for another Monday I suppose.
In here, we installed new flooring, removed the wallpaper from the bottom half of the wall, painted that, and wallpapered the top half! Eventually I will put more photos of all this up, I just wanted to get going with a little before and after. The chest in the corner is an antique from India, it was an anniversary gift from my husband and I to each other!! On the table are some wonderful brass charger plates that I got at a thrift store, took home, and shined up! I had never polished anything before, and I had no idea how rewarding it was!

I hope you enjoyed my first go at Met Monday, and I hope you are all enjoying the holiday season and taking some time for you! I have many more Met Monday posts in mind, so please stop back by. . .

My first tablescape. . .

Hannukah Celebration!

My first tablescape Thursday! Thanks to Susan at http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com for hosting. Check out her beautiful cardinal dishes and all the other lovely tablescapes.

This is my tablescape for our family hannukah party. It's my first attempt at a tablescape although I have been collecting dishes since October Lol!

My stepmom Christine, http://christineshomeandtraveladventures.blogspot.com was in town visiting me last weekend and we set a few tables together and I got a feel for it enough to give it a real shot!

We ate latkes (potato pancakes served with sour cream & applesauce). My husband is jewish so in our house we decorate for Hannukah & Christmas! We also celebrate both, so this time of year I get to host lots of gatherings! The latkes have to be served fresh so cooking and serving them is very high maintenance, requiring very simple make-ahead accompaniments! I made baked tilapia with sundried tomatoes & steamed broccoli.

So onto the table. . . .

The majority of the place settings are Sakura Galaxy blue, the napkin rings & napkins are from Homegoods. The flatware was a find ($19.99 for the whole set of 12 place settings & servers) on Ebay.

Below, is a little blue bottle that can hold lamp oil (but my kids are 4, 2, & 8 months so we can't have real fire unless it's up high!). I got this at a thrift store nearby, and it is so evocative of a genie to me.
The three brass candleholders are one of my favorite things on the table. They are so versatile and they look really pretty when they have a light inside them shining through the cut-outs.
See my little dreidel salt & pepper shakers?
I liked them so much I forgot I had a set and bought another set this year!!
I only had 6 of the Galaxy plates so I mixed and matched with some Homer Laughlin cobalt & floral plates. I only have 3 of these, but I am still searching. The problem is, they don't have a named pattern on the plate. . . if you know, please tell me!
I also was short one salad plate so I used a limoges plate that I only have one of. I love cobalt so I got this even though it was only one. I'm glad I did. The chargers underneath are brass with star cut-outs. Again, only 6 of these so I mixed with solid acrylic gold. I got the brass ones at an animal rescue thrift store, all 6 for $3.00! They were very tarnished but shined up so nicely don't you think? They are made in India.

So that's it - my first one, I hope you like it. . . join me next week for it will be Christmas with the kids!!