Monday, October 31, 2011

How Super Cute is That?!

My niece is due November 4th, but I'm kinda hoping she's the casually late type. I want to be there for her big day. Is that too much to ask? Well, no matter what, I plan to be her favoritest aunt ever. Can't wait to snuggle you, Lucy!

Shane, Kirby & Lucy

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Jack is Eleven Months!

You've gone all month without seeing your daddy, which is pretty crappy of the damn army but luckily he comes home tonight. I know he is so excited to play with you and see all your neat-o new tricks, and I know you've been missing him.


This month you figured out how to get from laying down to a sitting position. I'm not sure I love that because when I try to force encourage you to crawl you just roll over, sit up and start scooting around on your bottom. You also managed to pull yourself up into a standing position next to the couch, but have only done that one time. Perhaps, because we are doing a better job at keeping fun stuff, like laptops, out of your reach. I'm not going to lie, you manage to get into everything!

After a bath.
Lucky for you, Jack, you're pretty adorable. You have this new courtesy smile where you scrunch up your face. Mostly you do it when you want someone to be happy with you. You love to laugh. Last night you belly-laughed so hard you actually fell over, which made Mama get the giggles, too.

In his PNW gear.
My favorite things you've learned this month is to give hugs & kisses when asked. It's so sweet, even if your kisses are more like sucking on someone's cheek. It's cute... but, just for a couple more months. My other favorite thing is that you occasionally say, "mama". It sounds more like "baba," but I'll take it.

I love you, Sweet Son.
"Baba"

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Favorite Furber Things [From the Kitchen}

Bacon Soda

Bacon. It just might be the one thing my family can agree on. One of their favorite meals I've made was sausage-stuffed chicken wrapped in bacon, and one of the few ways I can get my kids to eat their veggies is to cook it in bacon. I never would have imagined convincing them to eat kale, but bacon did the convincing for me. Bacon is definitely a Favorite Furber Thing [From the Kitchen].

More recently I made a leek & potato soup with bacon, which also went over quite well. Here's the recipe, as I remember it. I think. Mostly. I'm sure it's pretty close.

Potato Soup:
2 Leeks
1 clove of garlic diced
1/2 pkg of Bacon
1 carrot, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
5 Potatoes, chopped
2 cups Chicken stock
2 cups milk
salt to taste
pepper to taste
thyme to taste
Finely chopped chives for garnish

Cook bacon in soup pot and set aside. Then remove most of the bacon grease, but leave enough to cook your aromatics. Add celery, carrots, and herbs. Sautee until tender.

In another pot make a roux. Add chicken stock and milk. Most recipes suggest whipping cream or half & half, but I didn't want the calories. This liquid will be added to the veggies and used to cook potatoes. At the last, add the chopped bacon. Hope you enjoy!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Favorite Furber Things [From the Kitchen}

Juanita's.
Have you tried these chips?! My favorite thing about going to a Mexican restaurant is the chips and salsa. Juanita's chips taste exactly like you would expect at a Mexican restaurant. Plus, they are usually the cheapest chips, and as I've said before, I love a good deal.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Favorite Furber Things [From the Kitchen}

Today's Furber favorite thing from the kitchen is sweet potatoes. A couple years ago we learned that sweet potatoes are better for you than regular potatoes (they contain beta carotene, vitamin B6, vitamin C and a good source of dietary fiber) so we tried to incorporate them into our diet more often. We love sweet potato fries (Alexia makes a gluten-free version), baked sweet potatoes, and mashed sweet potatoes. Check out the recipe below for a little Southwestern twist.

Southwest Sweet Potato Mash:
1/2 Sweet Potatoes
1/2 Baked Potatoes
Diced Green Chiles
Honey

I like cooking because it's not an exact science so forgive the lack of recipe. Fix the potatoes like you normally would make mashed potatoes (sour cream, milk, whatever...). Then add green chiles and honey to taste. Super delicious. Everyone who has tried it has asked for the recipe.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Favorite Furber Things [From the Kitchen}

For the next week I'm going to share a few of the Furbers' favorite things from the kitchen. Tonight we begin with Sweet Baby Rays. I originally bought this BBQ sauce because it happened to be the cheapest, and we all know that I love a good deal. But, this great deal ended up making for some delicious grub. Even better, Sweet Baby Ray's is a gluten-free sauce (it lists "modified starch" in the ingredients, but I called the company because that's how much we love Sweet Baby Ray's). Plus, there are several flavors as you can see (below). If you've not tried it, go out and buy a bottle!

No, Baby Ray is not paying me for this post.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Single Parenting This Month

As some of you know, Brian is "in the field" this month. Basically he's away for training and I'm a single mom of a 10mo and 17yo. It's a unique life I lead.

Yesterday morning, I gated Jack in his room in the hopes of getting my shower while Kylie was still asleep. After a quick scrubbin', I jumped out to check on Jack. I wish I had a photo of Kylie's wide-eyed face as I ran out of the bathroom with a towel hastily wrapped around my still-dripping body. I quickly retreated back to the bathroom, and heard Kylie remark, "Don't worry, Lindsay. I'm fine."

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Saturday, October 1, 2011