boo. i can’t afford the looks i love at heidi merrick, even at half off. but i love to peruse the sight for inspiration.

yay! i found a heidi merrick skirt at target in a beautiful ikat print just like the one above. can i justify another skirt purchase???

{via 101 cookbooks}

we’ve been in a big-time soup mood lately. since j loves broccoli (we call them little trees), i thought i’d try out cream of broccoli soup this week. this recipe is from how to cook everything by mark bittman, and it was simple and delish.

cream of broccoli soup

• 1 lb. of broccoli florets
• 1 large russet potato, peeled and chopped
• 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1/4 to 1 cup half-and-half , cream, or milk
• a grating of nutmeg
• salt and *white* pepper

Add the broccoli, potatoes, broth and bring to a boil. Don’t worry if broth doesn’t completely cover broccoli. Turn heat to low, cover, and simmer until the broccoli and potatoes tender, about 15-20 minutes.

Cool lightly and blend the entire mixture off heat until a smooth puree is achieved.  Return to low heat and warm through but do not boil. Add the cream. Add nutmeg and adjust salt and pepper.

next time i’m trying this recipe from 101 cookbooks.

happy eating! thanks to joslyn from raising foodies for hosting this cooking club. it’s been fun!

a very low-key weekend, however, i have started compiling holiday lists galore. we’re talking menus, gifts, and a general to-do a mile long. but…i love it so bring it on! (real simple’s holiday checklist is a great help, too).

some ideas i’ve started compiling for neighbor gifts…

{diy s’mores kits via twig and thistle}

{hot chocolate tins via blond designs}

and ideas for a holiday table…

{via real simple}

{chelsea protects me from the particular bad essays.}

this weekend is an essay-free weekend. i am caught up (until next week when another essay will be assigned. ha!) no plans as of yet, which is nice for once! 

and if you were wondering if i drink wine while grading essays, the answer is no, although that might not be a bad idea and it might boost the grades a bit. that would be pomegranate juice, which is really good for you and is really yummy. pom wonderful sent me some and everyone in our house loves it.  i plan on celebrating national pomegranate month and national adoption awareness month by baking these babies using the juice.

hope you have a wonderful weekend!

{via}

i sometimes get the occasional craving for a homemade chocolate chip cookie, but who wants to bake a big batch and eat them all by oneself? andrew’s been watching his sweets intake, j doesn’t even like cookies (interesting child, huh?), and everyone at work is dieting. i’d share with my students, but as of late they aren’t worthy since all they do is complain about how hard school is (we are ALL ready for thanksgiving break). so what i do is make a big batch, bake a few, and freeze the rest. they lie in wait in the freezer for when i’ve had one of THOSE days.

chocolate chip cookies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

preheat oven to 375F.

combine flour, baking soda, and salt and set aside. beat butter, sugar, and vanilla extract in a separate bowl until creamy. add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. gradually beat in flour mixture. drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased baking sheets.

bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. cook on baking sheets for 2 minutes.

tip: use an ice cream scoop to portion out the dough on cookie sheets. pop in the freezer. when they are fully frozen put cookies into a freezer bag.

{via the photographic dictionary}

of course we knew that adopting from the foster care system would be hard. it would be long. it would be heart-breaking at times. boy does it test your patience. i think adoption of any kind does that, but fost-adopt is unique in its own way. at different times we’ve just thrown up our hands saying, “are you kidding me? what else could happen?” and then it does. every time we’ve expected something to happen it hasn’t, so not a whole lot surprises us now.

the reason i don’t update about our adoption of j is basically because nothing new has happened. and the sad part? our state is one of the “quickest” to want to place children in permanent loving homes. so that means that thousands of children around the country just linger for a very long time in foster care. so despite it being heart-wrenching, if you are in any position to give a child a permanent home, or even a temporary one, then please consider it.

in the meantime, i apologize for the heavy posting on food. it is fall, however, and food and cooking is a form of entertainment around here. that and decorating, and maybe a little fashion, but decorating and fashion cost more money than food, so there you have it. oh wait there’s gardening. maybe i’ll post about my garden. i don’t know, but i am uninspired and a little jealous of some of your blogs. anyway, if you’re here about adoption, do check back later. if you’re here to listen to a crazy woman ramble, then thank you for listening.

we were supposed to sign adoption paperwork last week, but some paperwork from sacramento was delayed so now we wait a couple more weeks. of course. people ask me all the time, “how do you do it?” let me tell you what gets me through it: FAITH. plain and simple. i know that some of you might not believe in a higher being, but i do. big time. i believe that j was meant for us. i believe that God brought him to us. and i have faith that God will bring us another child (and maybe another one). i have no idea how many children we are meant to parent, but i know God does.

and if you really want to see how faith plays a role in adoption, see love’s story about adoption here. you’ll want to follow their journey for sure. and see here for katie’s work in uganda. truly amazing what faith can do.

yum. enough said. everyone liked them. as far as i know this was the little one’s first foray into the something made with pumpkin. he’s a fan so far. these waffles are like a soft pumpkin pie pancake bread. a lame description, i know, but yum. did i already say that???

pumpkin ginger waffles (from country living magazine)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon cinamon

1/4 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger

2 large eggs

3/4 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, and cinnamon together in a large bowl. remove 2 tablespoons of the flour mixture and toss with crystallized ginger in a small bowl. set aside. whisk eggs, buttermilk, pumpkin, sugar, and vanilla in a medium bowl. combine with flour mixture. stir in butter and fold in reserved crystallized ginger mixture. do not overmix. heat a waffle iron and make waffles, using about 1/2 cup batter for each one. keep warm in 200F oven, if desired.

‘

{fairytale pumpkin}

{halloween cupcakes…some of them were “eyeball” cupcakes…apologies for not remembering the source of the idea!}

{ghosts. idea via marta.}

{our little wild thing, max}

j was quite impressed with this holiday. he walked around as if in a happy daze, wondering how he didn’t know that his neighbors were quite so friendly as to pass out free candy. he’d stand at their doorstep chatting them up until they dropped an extra candy or two into his bucket. smart kid, that one. then he’d yell out, “thank you!”

{pumpkin waffles}

sunday was big time recovery. we spent half the day in our pajamas trying to bounce back from all the sweets we ate. but first we had to have pumpkin waffles. recipe to follow tomorrow.

hope your halloween was just as fun!

this monogram wreath project from design*sponge. and it’s my initial! i’m so doing this.

record player and albums in neryl walker’s home, also via design*sponge. i could kick myself for getting rid of mine.

framed hearts via madebygirl.

new dog bed duvets. ours are from molly mutt. i found them via madebygirl. if you order by tomorrow (sorry for the late notice) check out the coupon code here for a 10% discount. i can’t say enough about these. you just fill them up with old clothing, sheets, etc. and you’re good to go. very environmentally friendly!

 this diy wreath at the cb2 blog.

and last, but not least. stella mccartney’s new line of children’s clothing for the gap. love, love, love.

you know you’re a mother when you feel some sort of guilt, right? i’ve been grappling with this lately, as work comes piling in and i struggle to keep our house together and our family fed literally and metaphorically. since school has started i’ve tried my best to put good, wholesome meals on the table as i did all summer, and feeling guilty when i fell short. food is important to me anyway, but since getting j, it’s become more so, as he came to us undernourished over a year ago.

i can attest to the amazing attributes that good food has for a growing child, especially one that has come from a less-than-desirable background. i’ve had to surrender, however. the pressure is too great. i know the importance of local, sustainable, organic, etc., etc. but something’s gotta give right now. i’m seeking help from pre-made meals, and that’s that. trader joe’s and costco, i love you. we’re still eating healthily, just not everything from scratch as we did in the summer.

food isn’t the only thing i’ve had to lighten up on. i am a perfectionist, and it’s more often than not a fault, rather than a good thing. i made my own birthday cake.

yes, you heard it. i love to bake, no one else around here does, and i hate store-bought cakes, so there you have it. it wasn’t a problem for me, so i don’t see the problem other people had with it when i told them this. anyway, j wanted to help me frost the cake, and if you know the typical work of a 2-year-old in baking, you can imagine it wasn’t the prettiest thing you’ve seen. i let it happen though, despite my wincing faces behind his back, because i know it’s important to have j help. he had fun doing it, and it was precious to see his pride in making his mom a cake. in my head i planned to just whip up another one, perfect in every way, but something happened. i looked at the finished product and decided that it was simply the most beautiful cake i had ever seen. and there you have it. a perfectionist not quite reformed, but getting there, realizing that i am human, and that i could be proud, too, because i saw a beautiful mess.