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Chicken Curry Puffs

~ Girlmom ~ 2 Comments

This recipe hails from {ahem} All Recipes. I usually stay away from that site because the recipes are from every day Joe’s and if you stay too long you will find the same recipe made 1,368 different ways. I usually end up questioning the recipe and  cursing the reviews. Now you may loooove that site and send your recipes in and if that is the case I have probably judged your recipe. Just kidding…actually I’m not.

Here is where I become a hypocrite. I was offered a free subscription to the All Recipe magazine and if you know me, you know I lOVE magazines, so of course I took it. And after skimming through 4 of them I finally found a recipe I wanted to make. My mind instantly went back to the chicken curry pasties we I devoured in London. These took a little work and would be great for a party if you can wrangle someone to help you fill them. These turned out good, you should make them.

Instead of writing out the entire recipe, here is the LINK.

The filling makes enough to fill at least 3 puff pastry sheets, so we had a lot of filling left over. But that’s not a bad thing because it’s good on it own. The only thing I would do next time was add a spicier chili. Oh and maybe spend more time closing these suckers up, most of mine popped open.

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4 Months

~ Girlmom ~ 2 Comments

We’ve got ourselves another itsy bitys teeny weeny babe on our hands. Averi, 4 months is weighing in at a whopping 12 lbs. Same as her sister at 4 months.

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This kid likes:

Sucking on her toes.

Watching her sister.

Eating.

Sleeping.

Her carseat, as long as it’s moving.

You guys, I still haven’t switched her to the crib. I know, I know….Seriously I am chicken. Why rock the baby who sleeps through the night -5 out of 7 nights of the week. I mean S.L.E.E.P.S the entire night…6:30 to 6:30. WHY would I mess with that? Because Kim, she needs to be in her crib! Dammit!

This ham is a creature of habit, she loves her routine and I swear she will freak the hell out if she doesn’t have a bottle in her mouth at the right time…TWSS

 

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The doc said I can start her on oatmeal now and then veggies at 5 months, doesn’t this seem early? Im in no rush to push foods on her but it might be fun to see her reaction, we’ll see. It’s amazing how much I forgot about the baby months. I actually had to google “when do babies crawl”. Where do all these memories go?

 

Don’t Call me Pumpkin, Pumpkin.

~ Girlmom ~ 3 Comments

Halloween anticipation was immense for a certain 3 year old. Every year we have gone to Bates Nut Farm pumpkin patch where she pets the animals, rides a pony and as a bonus gets a pumpkin, because let’s be honest…pumpkins are boring after a pony ride.

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We got a little crafty with the pumpkins this year and sadly, I can’t blame it on Pinterest.

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She knew what she wanted to be for quite a long time and she stuck to her guns, good thing because I bought the costume in early October. But her dinosaur costume wasn’t the easiest to maneuver around in, so she had a two costume Halloween.

Fairy Princess at school.

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Scary dinosar at night.

 

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I was a very proud mom watching her trick or treat. She was amazingly good, polite and so darn cute. This costume beats Elsa every day of the year!

 

 

Week in Photos

~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

It’s been awhile since I have had one of these blog posts, which means I am doing more things, AND there were even a few firsts this past week, winning!

First off, coffee! Since I don’t support big coffee chains anymore (insert snob emoji here) I will only drink local coffee when out and about. Luckily good, local coffee is not hard to find in this fine city. I met a friend I havn’t seen in awhile at The Swell, in Mission Beach. This friend is also the face behind SD Coffee Club. Having coffee with her is like eating with a food critic, the service will be red carpet and they will chat with you about shit you don’t know or really care about..but it’s good coffee.

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I also tried a new restaurant, El Agave in Old Town. It was a last minute lunch and it was one of the best I have had in awhile. You must try the Mole enchiladas, the sopa cilantro and the sopes surtidos. It was a quiet lunch which means, perfect with two little ones.

*Side note.-I always check the restaurants  website and Yelp to see if it’s kid friendly. Most of the time...unless it’s a five star dining establishment, they will be happy to accommodate kids, (assuming yours isn’t a little shit) especially at an earlier time. They just might not have a child’s menu.

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Another first, we went downtown to the new waterfront park. Think new age play area for the kids meets fancy water feature splash pad but less impressive. Jeez, I don’t mean to be a downer but i think the space could have been a lot more impressive.

Clearly she didn’t mind.

IMG_5414 IMG_5404This kid of mine must have hit a growth spurt because she has been sleeping 12 hours STRAIGHT at night. The first few nights I woke up around 4 and like a creeper went into her room to make sure she was breathing #paranoid. The other nights I just look at the video monitor to see if she moves.

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Kaili has been taking gymnastics at our YMCA, she loves it!!

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I took the kids to Fiesta Island for the first time…solo. The trip just reminded me how inconvenient it is to do this shit alone. That is all.

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Vietnamese Lemon Grass Beef and Noodle Salad

~ Girlmom ~ 3 Comments

Craving- (Noun) A powerful desire for something.

These days I rarely have the motivation to make an elaborate meal and by elaborate, I mean something with more than 3 steps and takes longer than 15 minutes. That is until I saw this recipe and I needed to have it in my mouth that day!{that’s what she said.}

After a quick trip to the store, where I found everything I needed except the chili’s {so I settled for a Serrano} I started to prep what was going to be the best football lunch evah!

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The recipe is straight forward and I didn’t veer off course. However, the recipe claims to only take 1 hour but it took  longer. There is a bit of prep work and add on 15 minutes to fry the shallots {don’t skip this!} It’s worth it, I promise!

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Cold noodles, hot meat, fresh herbs, crunchy shallots, spicy siracha, you guys, it was delicious. “Haha <– she said hot meat!”

 

Dinosaur Roar!

~ Girlmom ~ 5 Comments

Last week I got to meet Jenny Mollen. “Who?” is what you are thinking…right? She is an actress, author and married to an “American Pie” actor. I have followed her on social media for awhile because she is hilarious and when her book came out I read it in 2 days. So when I saw that she was going to be in San Diego for a book signing I was eager to go. My girlfriend and I went down to meet her and listen to her chat about the book. I had never done anything like that before and although I didn’t need my iPad signed or even feel the need to have a picture with her, it was fun and i would do it again!
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Averi is turning 3 months in a few days. It’s been a LONG 3 months. Her favorite thing to do is visit our newest winery.
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Kaili is eagerly awaiting Halloween. She has been adamant that she wants to be a Dinosaur.
ROAR!
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Getaway

~ Girlmom ~ 3 Comments

I am realizing that adding a second kid has taken time away from my blogging, so I apologize that posts are further apart but rest assured I will catch up.

Monday, the girls and I drove up to Ventura to stay the week with Shane. He gave up his handy (ahem cheaper) hotel for the week and moved us into the Embassy Suites Mandalay beach resort. It’s right on the beach in Oxnard. With a big pool and a couple of hot tubs, we were sure to be entertained. Our room had a perfect ocean view and with a big patio that I sat out on every day.

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The drive was great, Averi slept and Kaili was a perfect angel but by the end of the first day I was second guessing the trip. I was exhausted and I had a baby to tend to. Averi woke up at 3:am that next morning and didn’t go back to sleep until minutes before Shane had to leave for work. Kaili popped up not a moment later so the four of us rolled down to breakfast at an ungodly time and I wanted to cry in my coffee. But 7 cups of caffeine later and a swim in the pool, I felt much better. Averi was being a perfect baby, napping when I needed her to { AKA at the pool} and Kaili was so much fun to be with.

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I started to fall into a rhythm and was able to fully enjoy myself. Kaili and I went swimming every morning after breakfast while Averi napped in the stroller. We hit the beach after lunch and then the pool again for Averi’s afternoon nap.

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When Shane got back we would head out to dinner. Sadly we didn’t have much luck in the choices we made, the food was nothing special and the service subpar. Fed up with our meals I put a little more research into our last dinner.  I came across a restaurant in the Ventura harbor that had sparkling reviews, and it didn’t disappoint.

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We splurged on a nice bottle of wine for our anniversary and enjoyed it over looking the harbor.

For our drive home we put Kaili’s carseat in Shane’s car so we could both take advantage of the carpool lane. We started south on PCH stopping in Santa Monica for a twirl on the Ferris Wheel and lunch.

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Next year we will do it all over again and I can’t wait.

Averi, 2 Months

~ Girlmom ~ 3 Comments

Three and a half years later and I feel like a first time mom but this time I am less of a worry wart. Every few nights when I am standing in the dark rocking rocking Averi, I wonder how I did this the first time around and WHY do some women keep on having babies?

         This is why.

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Averi Ciera, she is a darn good baby, rarely cries and just wants to be loved on, so who am I to complain? Nights are getting better. We have just started getting into a routine and she is starting to give me 6 hour sleep stretches at night, it’s great. But getting her to sleep takes a hot minute and it’s stressful, which I completely forgot about from the first time around…Conveniently.

She  takes two to three naps a day. I would love to say she naps at the same time and the same place each day but that won’t happen. Kaili’s school and daily activities just won’t allow that luxury. I find myself walking a thin line between following a routine and playing it by ear. Basically I am struggling to find a rhythm. I should say that when Shane is home, things are much easier. Having another pair of hands to help with the bottles and the dishes and the cooking and the feeding just makes life a little easier. Major props to all the single parents out there!

Here is stone cold face Averi. She is giving smiles, I am just not quick enough to capture a really good one on film.

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A Week in Photos

~ Girlmom ~ 1 Comment

Is it really September? Somehow the the past few weeks have been a blur and I find myself looking forward to Fall. I am sure I will regret that statement by NovemBRRR.

Kaili has spent the past week in the water, swimming in our neighbors pool or the hot tub. She has stayed up late playing with friends and making pizza. We had our neighborhood block party and Kaili  had her “real” first day of school. When watching her play, the three things I know she is picking up from school are, the months of the year, that Jesus loves her, and you go to time out for hitting.

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A Week in Photos

~ Girlmom ~ 2 Comments

Kaili accidentally dropped her cup of milk on the ground, with a worried look on her face she said “sorry mommy.” I grabbed her, hugged her and told her it’s fine and it wasn’t her fault and then I acted out this scene from Good Will Hunting. I wish you guys could have seen it, I was riveting.

Kaili was invited to one of her little friends birthday party over the weekend. Ariel aka The Little Mermaid made an appearance and now everything is mermaids this and mermaids that. It should last for another 5 minutes and then it will be old news.

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I managed to get the kids packed up and we hit the road to walk Kaili TO school, first time for everything.

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I finally got around to taking Kaili for a haircut. Little Locks in La Jolla is the cutest place, half salon, half toy store. She sat patiently through the whole thing.

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This little girl is 7 weeks old today.

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Kaili assures me she likes her baby. She assists me with every diaper change and smothers her with kisses.

Averi is getting stronger, holding her head up more often. She will give you a smile, if you’re lucky and she even giggled in her sleep which was the cutest thing to date.

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