Pumpkin Cake

I've made this cake several times already this fall. It is really moist and yummy. Bonus - it is dairy-free.

2 cups white sugar
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups canned pumpkin
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 12x18 inch pan. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a large bowl combine sugar and oil. Blend in vanilla and pumpkin, then beat in eggs one at a time. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in nuts. Spread batter into prepared 12x18 inch pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.

Honey Mustard Pretzel Chicken

This wasn't necessarily awesome the first time around; however, I think it has potential. For me, the Dijon mustard was a little too horseradish-y. I think I'll use prepared honey mustard dressing next time around (instead of making my own). If I make my own, I may use plain yellow mustard instead of Dijon. Either way, Tom loved it, and with a couple changes, it could be a go-to.

4 boneless chicken breasts
3/4 c Dijon mustard
1/4 c mayonnaise
2 T honey
1/8 cayenne pepper
2 garlic cloves
1 minced green onion
salt
pepper
1 c crushed pretzel

Preheat oven to 340 degrees.

Pound/flatten chicken breasts until about 1/4 inch thick. Combine mustard, mayonnaise, honey, cayenne pepper, garlic, green onion, and salt and pepper to taste. Set half of mixture aside to be used as dipping sauce. Coat chicken completely in remaining mustard mixture, and then dredge in pretzel crumbs. Place coated chicken on baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and juices run clear.

Stitches!

Yesterday, Sydney woke up from her nap, and I put her on the potty as usual. I noticed we were out of toilet paper, so I told her, "Mommy will be right back! I'm going to go get you some toilet paper." I stepped into the hallway to grab an extra roll and heard a big bang. I went back into the bathroom, and Syd was face down crying in between the wall and the toilet with her bare hiney up in the air. I picked her up and suddenly realized she was bleeding. I was so surprised she was bleeding, I think I actually yelped. Then, I saw the actual wound. Oh my gosh - it looked like a crater in her forehead!

I quickly stuck a bunch of toilet paper in her head and called my dad. I knew the injury was ER-worthy, I just didn't know whether it was ambulance-worthy. Dad told me to call 911, which I did. But - as I was on the phone with 911, I managed to stop the bleeding. Once the bleeding had stopped, and Syd stopped crying (and wasn't acting funny), I decided I could handle a trip to the ER without an ambulance. I called my dad back and had him come to the house. I got Syd in the car. I called the Bergemans and asked them to come care for Cole. I called Jodi, and she took care of dinner for her parents and crime scene clean-up. Really - our family scrambles well. Everyone was activated within a matter of minutes.

Dad, Syd, and I went to the ER. Mom met us there. The nurses at the ER took one look at the wound and said, "Yeah - that's definitely going to need stitches." We requested that a plastic surgeon do the stitches because the wound was on her face. The only problem was that the plastic surgeon was in surgery at Fairfax hospital. Three hours later, he was with us at the ER sewing Syd up. She ended up with three stitches on the outside and two stitches on the inside.

What a day. Thanks to everyone who helped - it takes a village! We are so incredibly blessed to live close to family that is so supportive of us. We love you!

Today, Syd is resting and watching TV. She's not all the way back to normal, but we're getting there.

Double Digits!

Well, officially, Sarah doesn't turn 10 until this Monday. However, we celebrated her big 1-0 this past weekend - complete with a candyland cake! I figured I'd take this opportunity to review some of my favorite Sarah moments from the past 10 years:

- When Sarah was first born, Tom refused to hold her. He deemed her still in "larva stage." After much encouragement, he agreed to touch her foot.

- When Sarah was little, I remember eating dinner at Jodi's house. Sarah was in the pack and play, and everyone else was seated at the table eating. Sarah started to cry, and everyone looked at Jodi. Jodi immediately declared that she was going to let her whimper a little because she didn't want her to get used to us picking her up every time she cried. After a couple minutes of Sarah crying, Sammi the dog started crying too... as if to say, "Hello people - are you deaf? The kid is crying - come and get her!"

- Once when I was in the car with Sarah, we passed a firetruck with lights and sirens blaring. Sarah said, "Oh... someone must have left their closet light on." It turns out Jodi had been telling Sarah that if she left her closet light on, she'd burn down the house.

- When Sarah was 4 or 5 years old (I think), she told Jodi that she should go to Quilts to get gas for her car. She meant Sheets!

- One of the first Christmases that Sarah could tell us what she wanted, she said she wanted a Baby Alive. That Christmas, she screamed, "I want a Baby Alive!" at the Santa on television during the Macy's day parade and at the mall Santa as Jodi was hurriedly pulling her away!

- Sarah once told me that if she had a farm, she'd have all kinds of farm animals, including rubber chickens.

- My favorite Flip video I've taken was on Christmas eve two years ago. Sarah was so excited that Santa had visited the house and left presents! She just couldn't believe it!

- Sarah is extremely helpful when it comes to Cole. She loves her cousin and helps her aunt take care of him every chance she gets!

Sarah is growing into quite the little lady. We're so blessed to be such a big part of her life! Happy Birthday, Sarah!

Election Day

A week ago today was election day. Sydney went to school, so it was just Cole and I at the polls. We went to our usual polling place and recorded our vote. The line was much longer than usual, which I think is great. You shouldn't be allowed to complain if you don't take responsibility for your civic duty. People have sacrificed their lives to protect our right to vote!

Happy Halloween!

What a week! This past week, we attended three Halloween parties, practiced trick-or-treating at both grandparents' houses, and did the real thing last night. For the first time ever, I took Sydney trick-or-treating - for real. We went to three houses on our street and four houses on the next street over. By the end of the night, she really had it down... she was yelling, "trick-or-treat" at the top of her lungs and saying, "thank you, Happy Halloween!" after she got the goods. When we got home, she ripped off her costume and ate candy until waaay past her bedtime! All the excitement caused Baby Cole to pass out without even eating his pre-bedtime meal (not to worry - I woke him up and fed him when I got home)! Here are some of the week's best pictures:

Syd getting a nice push from her friend, Madalynn

Baby Cole sporting his dinosaur costume

Sydney's preschool Harvest party

Waiting for friends at our playgroup Halloween party

Practicing trick-or-treating at Gamma and Papa's house

Trick-or-treating on Halloween at Cliff and Leigh's house

Slow-Cooked Asian Chuck Roast

This was really, really good. Not too spicy, but plenty of zip!

1 (2 1/2 - 3 lbs) Boneless beef chuck roast

Flour

2 Tbsp Olive oil
1 bottle (20 oz) Wegmans Asian-style BBQ sauce
2 cups Wegmans Food You Feel Good About Thai culinary stock
2 pkgs (8 oz each) Fresh baby corns, cut to 1-inch rounds
1 pkg (16 oz) Frozen broccoli cuts, thawed
2 pkgs (16 oz each) Wegmans Asian Classics Udon noodles, thawed per package directions

Dust meat with pan-searing flour; pat off excess. Heat oil in large braising pan on MEDIUM-HIGH, until oil faintly smokes. Add meat. Brown, turning to brown all sides, 3-4 min per side. Transfer meat to slow cooker. Stir in BBQ sauce and stock.

Cook meat in slow-cooker 4-5 hours on HIGH or 7-9 hours on LOW. Remove just the meat from slow-cooker; transfer to clean platter.

Add corn, broccoli, and noodles to slow-cooker on HIGH; stir to combine. Cover; cook 5-15 min, or until vegetables are thoroughly heated. Stir before transferring to serving platter and topping with meat.