A Grand Excuse to Play

We invited some families from our ward for dinner, and the kids could not have been happier!

{Note: Of course, we were happy too!}

It was a grand excuse to play, and it was fun watching their adventures!

{Can't you just hear them shouting?}

Count your lucky stars you didn't hear this!

Just kidding!

These girls put on a wonderful show...

And they were so pleased with themselves!

There was a roaring hot fire...

which was a perfect ending...

to a perfect night!

2010 Easter

Yes, it's embarrassingly late to post about Easter, but really, what's new!

Our annual Easter dinner was delicious!  We had all the usual suspects, and I couldn't have been happier!

What with our crazy weather patterns, our Easter Hunt was held indoors this year.  

The troops took it in stride!

Dessert was Chocolate Molten Lava Cakes inspired by my friend Angie.  One bite of hers and I knew what I'd serve at my Easter table.

No complaints!

Later, we joined Samuel family for a dessert bar of:

Mexican Wedding Cookies,

Congo Bars,

And

Mini Lemon Meringue Tarts

We are so blessed with:

Food
Family
Love
Life

And a testimony of
The Savior,
Jesus Christ!

Happy Easter!

April Hail?

Only in California!

Carving Out a Garden

 

Where there's a will...

there's a way!

Scardy Cats

Owen and Gabriel are so funny.

They are both terrified of swings!

Samuel and I are only allowed to push them very softly, and even still, after a few minutes, they're ready to move on.

I love my little scardy cats!

April Fools!

Cilantro Lime Avocado Salad

This dish is adapted from a Barefoot Contessa recipe. It's light, refreshing, and a perfect side to anything fresh from the grill!  

Note:

You will love this simple recipe, but keep in mind that once you add the avocado it's best served immediately.  To make in advance, just prepare until that point and add the avocado at the last.

Cilantro Lime Avocado Salad

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Level: Easy
Serves: 6

Ingredients

2 Roma Tomatoes, chopped
1 .c of frozen corn, steamed and cooled.
1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained
2 ripe Hass avocados, seeded, peeled, and diced.1 medium jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1/2 c. chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp. freshly grated lime zest

Place the above items in a large bowl and set aside.

1/4 c freshly squeezed lime juice (2 limes)
1 drizzle of olive oil (approx. 1 1/2 tbs)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp of fresh minced garlic
1/4 tsp of cayenne or chili powder

Whisk together the above ingredients and pour over the vegetable mixture. 

Toss well, but carefully, to maintain the texture of the avocado.

Season to taste and serve at room temperature.

Enjoy!

Pork Carnitas

This savory pork marinated in spices and olive oil steeps in broth, onions, and garlic until tender and soft.  Perfect for gently shredding and serving in a warm tortilla or over nachos.

Note: 

When I make this, it's typically for a crowd, hence the large portions.  Feel free to adjust the recipe to suit what you need.

Pork Carnitas

Ingredients

7 1/2 lbs. pork sirloin tip roasts

1 Tb. olive oil

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper

1/2 Tb. onion powder

1/2 Tb. garlic powder

1 Tb. chili powder
Pam Cooking Spray

1 large onion, peeled and quartered

8 garlic cloves, minced

1 c. low-sodium chicken broth

Directions

Trim the roasts of any visible fat.  Lay on a prepared baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.  Massage into the meat and set aside. 

In a small bowl combine the spices.  Using your hands, pat the mixture onto the roasts until covered.  Place the roasts in a zip-lock bag and refrigerate overnight.

After marinating, allow pork to come to room temperature.  Heat a large pan over medium-high heat and spray with the cooking spray.  Brown all sides of the meat, and then arrange the roasts in a slow cooker.  Nestle the onion throughout, being careful to leave in quarters (After cooking, the onion quarters will be removed).  Top with the minced garlic and broth.

Set the slow cooker to low and cook for 8 hours and the meat is fall-apart tender.  

Remove the quartered onions which will be extremely soft, carefully shred the meat with a fork, season to taste, and serve as desired.

For a colorful presentation, place in a large serving platter and place a mound of shredded red cabbage & cilantro tossed in a lime vinaigrette and sprinkle with feta cheese or queso fresco.

Enjoy!

  

The Black Chasm Caverns

For Samuel's birthday, he took some time off of work and we hit the road!  We ended up at the Black Chasm Caverns, and explored over...and under!

The kiddies had a great time exploring while we waited for our tour to begin.

They also had fun watching water stream from the gold mining sloughs.

Almost there!


We are all anxious to dive deep into the earth!

And so we go!

 

It really is amazing!

And the girls-all but Iris-were mesmerized!

Gabriel was sweet-tart the whole way down and up.  It was only later that we realized we didn't have a bottle on us!  Good thing he's such an easy going baby!

This room was called the "Princess Room".
Iris, who was terrified the entire time, was finally won over!

Back on land we played on the see-saw!  This puppy is ancient and we nearly killed ourselves on it!

The adventure left us starving, and what better way to curb your appetite than a giant pizza from Alonzo's!

Talk about cheesy!


{The Pizza, not Samuel!
Although...}

{Happy Birthday Peanut}

We love you Dad!

It really is just a hill...

I'm pleasantly surprised!

But let me back up just a bit.

A long, long, long time ago...

when Samuel and I were just dating,

we got it into our heads to head up the hill to Daffodil Hill.

We heard it was amazing, and so we stopped for rations (Taco Bell, the 10 pack), and off we went.  I think it was June or July...either way, it was way past the daffodil season, and all we ended up seeing were a few limpy remnants.

Now, many moons later,

married and with five kids in tow, 

we decided it was time to head back up that same hill.

And so we go.

The pleasant surprise came when we happened upon the farm and saw that the parking was free!  

That's unheard of.

Everything nowadays has a gimmick, a draw, or a catch 

{Are you noticing the Tootsie Pops?}.

But the parking was free.

Uh.

They had horses...

Peacocks,

and of course...

Flowers!

And guess what?

It's all free!

Hence the mommy and daddy smiles!

We had fun poking around...

And Ava even threw a rockin' good fit!

And this peaceful place proved to be just the right spot to catch your breath...

and calm down.

And of course...

You can't beat...

The amazing photo ops!

I could have snapped pictures ALL day!

And I did!