Recipe Review: One Pot Spaghetti

Over the past week, I've had fun trying new recipes. So far we have had two fails (Balsamic Pot Roast and Buffalo Chicken Pasta) and now two successes! 

We tried "One Pot Spaghetti" last night and LOVED it! I have always been a Spaghetti person, and last night I converted Jason. This recipe takes it to another level in taste and simplicity. 

Here's what you need:

1 lb ground beef

1 can chicken broth (I used 8 oz from my carton)

1 jar Ragu

1/2 cup water

8 oz spaghetti noodles (about half of package)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

-In large pot, brown the meat and drain excess liquid.

-Add broth, sauce, and water to pot with the meat.

-Bring to boil, and then add pasta.

-Reduce heat, let simmer for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally, and add more water if needed.
-Once your pasta is cooked to how you like it, remove from heat, stir in cheese and serve!

After you've enjoyed this delicious dinner, you can enjoy the easy clean up of just one pot! The next time we have company, I'm pretty sure I will make this.

DIY Fabric Blocks

A few weeks ago I posted this picture on Instagram of the fabric blocks I was working on. I realized that I should share the tutorial because this is something SUPER easy! 

The tutorial I used can be found Here.

It was so simple I finished these in just two days. (Would've been faster if my sewing machine isn't so loud...no sewing during nap/bed time.)

This is a great project for emptying out your scrap box of fabric. You can make them any size you want, judging by what scraps you have. 

I used flannel fabric for two of the sides just to add different texture. Also, I didn't realize but the pink ribbon I used for the taggies also has bumpy edges. Perfect for a curious little babe. 

Here you can see they are a winner! I even toyed with the idea of putting bells inside or "crinkly" materials, but in the end I just went for something simple. And this way they can come to church.

Recipe Review: Mongolian Beef

I LOVE it when a Pinterest recipe works out. I love it even more when its easy, and can be made with ingredients I would normally have on hand. 

 

Photo via
This recipe was easy to make, and so delicious I have ZERO pictures of my own because we gobbled it up. The original recipe can be found at Six Sisters Stuff but I'm going to share what I did, because I omitted some ingredients to make it easier. 

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds beef flank steak, cut into stir-fry sized strips
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup soy sauce
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup brown sugar

(I left out carrots, green onions, and diced ginger.)

Directions: Coat each piece of meat with corn starch and place in crock pot. Combine all other ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Pour over meat and cook on high for 2-3 hours, or low for 4-5.

We ate ours over rice, and you could totally add your own vegetables if that's your thing. This recipe will definitely make a weekly appearance at our house.

9 Month Update

I can't believe that my baby girl is 9 months old now. She has officially been outside of my tummy as long as she was in there!

In the past month Marley has cut another tooth, ridden her first airplane, and said her first two "words." She can say "ba-ba" and "mama," but they aren't ever directed at me or a bottle...she just likes to talk!

Yesterday Marlene had her 9 month check up and has sure grown a lot. At her 6 month check up she weighed 15 pounds 6 oz, and measured 26 inches long. Now she is 17 pounds 13 oz, and measures 27.25 inches long. 

All day I was dreading her appointment because I knew she would need a flu shot. Any parent knows that shots are the worst, but guess what. Marlene didn't even cry! I didn't even know that could happen...  

I have a feeling we are also days away from Marley cutting at least 2 more teeth on top. We had a rough night last night, and she has been super clingy. 

Here's how other things are going:

Marlene Likes

Feeding herself snacks

Watching Doc McStuffins and the Price is Right

Trying to grab any electronic device

Digging through her toy bins

Being outside

Her bath toys 
Riding in shopping carts or the stroller

Listening to music
Banging toys on the tv stand
 

Marlene Doesn't Like

Face-planting

Sitting still during diaper changes

Wearing shoes or headbands
Going to bed

 Another month gone by, I can't believe how much our little girl is growing. I'm grateful for every day I get to spend watching her learn and grow into such a little person. She never ceases to amaze me.

California Trip

Last week we were fortunate enough to be able to visit my family in California. My parents and little brother were very excited to see Marlene, especially since the last time they saw her she was only 6 weeks old. 

We flew in Friday night, the 11th, and were able to stay until Sunday the 20th. That's a long time for Marlene to be away from home, but she didn't mind at all! She never once got scared when meeting new people or going to new places. The one time she did get scared was when Mommy yelled at the TV during a baseball game...oops. 

While in California we were able to go to two of Nathan's band reviews, Franklin and Del Oro. To say Marlene loved that would be an understatement. At the first one, she was having so much fun I had to remind her it was time for lunch. I realized it had been 5.5 hours since her last bottle, but she was having such a great time she didn't notice.  

I'm grateful that our trip was longer because it gave us time to catch up with lots of people! Marlene was quite the charmer, and loved going to so many fun places. 

(Most of the time I was too caught up in visiting to take a lot of photos, so I'm sorry if a visit with you wasn't photographed!)

The last hurrah of our trip was driving up to Apple Hill on Saturday. We got stuck in terrible traffic, but it was worth it! I hadn't been there in about 14 years, so I was grateful we went. We got yummy food, some dough ornaments (a family tradition dating back to 1994), 

and these cute pictures:

 Towards the end of the week it was fun to see Marlene develop better relationships with her family. She always had a wave for her Papa, tried to catch Nathan's eye for a smile, and loved to keep Grandma company in the kitchen. 

Now we're home and I can't wait even more for the day when we can move back to the bay area, and be closer to so many of our family members and friends.  

Marlene's First Pictures

We took Marlene to get her pictures taken a few weeks ago, and here they are, courtesy of Megan Hauze Photography 

We are so happy with how they turned out! 

 

If you need photos of your little one taken, I highly recommend Megan! She has so many cute outfits, headbands, and backdrops. And she is great with kids...
she has triplets of her own!

So grateful we have these beautiful pictures to capture the sweet spirit of our little girl!

Our Insta Weekend

This weekend was so much fun! Here is what we did through the eyes of instagram...

Friday:

 Marley and I went shopping, and then we picked Jason up from school and went out to lunch. After that we came home and just had a silly day. This picture is from us playing around with Marley in our room. Jason is usually so busy with school and work, it was fun to spend time with our little family.

Saturday:

We watched General Conference, and it was amazing!

Then it was time for ladies night! My sisters and I got together with all our kids. The cousins had lots of fun playing, and we got to do fun crafts and grabbed some dinner!

Sunday:

We had fun watching more conference. I loved catching Marlene watching the speakers, 

she was very interested.

Then we just spent the rest of the day playing at home. I cracked up when I saw how Marlene was sitting on her sensory board. That big car wash sponge

 makes the perfect cushion...

This coming week is full of exciting things! My dear friend Alyssa is coming to visit and we're going to have lots of fun. And then on Friday we are flying to California to visit my family! I'll be sure to instagram all the fun. 

DIY Sensory Board

Lately our little girl has become so curious! I can tell she's learning so much everyday, I just want to encourage her in anyway I can. So I started looking around Pinterest for ideas on sensory toys and decided a sensory board was what she needed. 

Most sites had CRAZY boards that required a lot of hardware, nuts & bolts, zip ties, peg boards, etc. And then there were others that just hot glued stuff onto a poster board. I was leaning more towards the hot glue side, when I realized that there are lots of things that can't just be glued on. 

So to maximize my options I decided to do something in the middle. I bought one of those foam poster boards and poked holes in places where I wanted to zip tie larger items, and then hot glued everything else. 

I had so much fun exploring the Dollar Tree for things that Marley would love to explore. It was interesting trying to think like a baby. Here are some of the items I bought:

Gift wrap bows
Bath Sponges
Dog toy rope
Car wash sponges
Dish scrubbers
Colored pom poms
Metal strainer
Hair brush
Duster
Bubble wrap
And a Sparkly letter "M"

The trick is to get a variety of textures. Soft, rough, smooth, hard, etc. Then space them out on the board so that similar textures aren't grouped together.
 
I bought one of those foam poster boards and zip-ties at Wal-Mart (Before I realized they were at the Dollar Tree too) and the whole project ended up costing me about $12. 

I used a screw driver to poke holes into the board for the zip-ties, and make sure you place them close enough together so that the item is secure. For the other items I used A LOT of hot glue to make sure Marley can't pull them off. 

Overall, I'm so glad I made this for my little one. She loves it! I can tell the little wheels are turning in her head and she can't stop exploring. 

 Most of the items on here aren't choking hazards, but I don't like to leave her alone while playing with this. (She MAAAAY have already destroyed that silver bow) Plus, its a great opportunity to get on the floor and play with your little one! 



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