I LOVE MY FAMILY!
Halloween
This year Hallie decided she wanted to be a princess for halloween. Surprise. surprise!! haha At first she wanted to be Sleeping Beauty and then it changed to Belle. This made my life really easy because she already had the dress and the shoes. I ordered a crown on amazon.com but because of the hurricane it didn’t make it here on time. She didn’t seem to mind. Thank goodness! Kyle was Prince Charming. And a handsome Prince Charming at that! I doubted my choice for him because he has recently become obsessed with Buzz Lightyear but I figured this was the last year he would let me choose for him so I stuck with the prince. My amazing mom made his costume. She is so good at everything she does. The costume was so awesome and he looked like a handsome handsome prince! I’m seriously obsessed with this boy!! 🙂
Virginia Fall
We love living in Virginia. One of the many reasons is the beautiful fall we get each year. This was my 6th fall out here and I love it every time.
With a big yard comes lots of work year round. In the fall we have a million leaves to rake. Good thing we also get to play in them.
I love making memories.
Preschool Adventure
A few weeks ago we went on a preschool field trip to a nature center. The kids had a great time exploring on a walk and then inside the nature center. They were able to see animals and bones and old snake skin. So cool!
Recipes
A lot of people ask me what we eat these days in the Crane house now that we are trying to be vegetarian/vegan. Here are some of my favorite recipes that I have made over and over again and we love every time.
Chickpeas in Potato-Onion Curry
2 cups onions, cut up in 1 inch pieces
3 Tablespoons oil, divided
1 1/2 cups cubed potatoes
1 can (14 ounces) coconut milk
1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, drained and rinsed.
5-6 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Juice of 1/2 lemon (I have often left this out)
1. In a skillet over high heat, cook the onions in 1 tablespoon oil until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes and coconut milk; cover and cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes; add the chickpeas. In a food processor, combine the garlic, salt, coriander, turmeric, chili powder, and cumin; process until it becomes a paste, scraping down sides as needed.
2. Heat remaining oil in a small skillet, and fry the garlic mixture for 1 minute, allowing it to become fragrant and slightly browned. Add the garlic mixture to the chickpea pot. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes; season to taste with lemon and additional salt. Serve with basmati rice and/or indian breads. (I usually don’t have lemon and I serve over brown rice.)
15 Minute Creamy Avocado Pasta
1 medium sized ripe avocado, pitted
1/2 lemon, juiced + lemon zest to garnish
2-3 garlic cloves, to taste
1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
1/4 cup fresh basil, (I used a paste)
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 servings/6 oz of your choice of pasta (I used whole wheat spaghetti)
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1. Cook your pasta Al Dente
2. Meanwhile, make the sauce by placing the garlic cloves, lemon juice, and olive oil into a food processor. Process until smooth. Now add in the pitted avocado, basil and salt. Process until smooth and creamy.
3. When pasta is done cooking, drain and rinse in a strainer. Place pasta in a large bowl. Pour on sauce and toss until fully combined. Garnish with lemon zest and black pepper. Serve immediately. Makes 2 servings.
Vegetarian Quinoa Chili
1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 cup water
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 medium zucchini, chopped
2 (15oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
3 (15oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 (15oz) can tomato sauce
2-3 Tbsp chili powder, depending on your taste for spicy
1 Tbsp ground cumin
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Optional toppings: green onions, avocado slices, cheese, sour cream, greek yogurt, chips etc.
1. In a medium sauce pan, combine the quinoa and water. Cook over medium heat until water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Set aside.
2. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over high heat. Add the onion and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, jalapeno, carrot, celery, peppers, and zucchini. Cook until vegetables are tender, about 10 min.
3. Add the black beans, kidney beans, tomatoes and tomato sauce. Stir in the cooked Quinoa. Season with chili powder, cumin, salt and black pepper. Simmer chili on low for about 30 minutes. Serve warm. (This chili freezes well.)
More to come. Let me know if you try any of these.
The Crane Princess
My mom bought Hallie some ridiculously beautiful dresses so one Sunday I tried taking some pictures of my princess. This is what I got.
National Zoo
The fall is the perfect time to go to the Zoo. Kyle didn’t know what Zoo meant so we told him it was where the animals lived. All morning he kept saying “anmal” because he was so excited. I think the favorites of the day were the monkeys, elephants, and farm animals. They talked about them all day!
Hallie’s 1st Day of Preschool
We started another co-op preschool this year. It was actually a huge answer to my prayers. Hallie really enjoys preschool and I wanted her do it but we can’t afford the crazy prices that a drop of preschool costs. A mom I knew from my mission emailed me asking if I wanted to join their preschool. (They only live about 10-15 min away) I was so grateful!
The first two weeks of preschool were at our house and things were so crazy that I didn’t take an official photo of Hallie. Since last week was her first week going to someone else’s house I figured it still counted as her first day. 🙂 She loved it and Kyle cried when we dropped her off. He finally calmed down once we got to the gym. When I picked him up after my workout the first thing he said was “Hallie, Joe Joe’s house. Get Hallie!” haha He really missed her.
Kyle’s 2nd Haircut
Ben cut Kyle’s hair again yesterday. We LOVED the curls but it was getting so long on the top back that we had to trim it. We gave Kyle some food and Ben tried his best. Kyle was moving all over the place. Ben kept saying it was the most difficult hair cut he had ever done. 🙂 Kyle’s hair ended up a lot shorter than we were expecting but he still looks handsome and Ben did a great job regardless of the circumstances.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
He’s just like his daddy and you couldn’t make him look bad. Although, I am looking forward to the curls growing back!
Weekend Trip for Two
A few weeks ago Ben’s mom and brother flew out from Utah to visit us. I love when people come and visit! It was such a treat for all of us. The kids were spoiled with lots and lots of attention from LaRae. Hallie cried and cried when it was time for them to go home. LaRae played pretend all day everyday (which is Hallie’s dream come true), took the kids to the pet store, bought them ice cream and watermelon and just spoiled them all around. They were in heaven. I’m so grateful my kids have such amazing grandma’s!
While LaRae was here we took advantage of the babysitting and took a trip. Ben and I went camping and then canoeing on the Shenandoah River. We did 12 miles and it was so fun and relaxing. I love being outdoors and so it was heaven to me. Thank you Ben for putting it together and thank you LaRae for watching the kids and making it possible.
Top two memories: Seeing a Bald Eagle hunt. It was incredible! Not seeing a soul for miles on the river and being just the two of us.
That same weekend (It was Labor Day weekend so it was long.) We took Ben’s brother Shawn to Ocean City, Maryland. Shawn had never been out east before and he really wanted to see Maryland and the beach. The weather wasn’t the greatest and it was a spur of the moment decision but we are glad we went. It was a fun day.
Instead of driving home the same way we came we decided to go the long way and see more of Maryland and Virginia. We drove down through Virginia Beach and back up to Woodbridge. Ben has been wanting to see the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and with no kids he took this opportunity. (Our kids in the car for long trips is no bueno!) Not only was it a long drive but we got stuck in traffic for two hours! Yikes! We were in the car for around 11 hours that day. We got lots of time to listen to Ron Paul books and lots of time to talk. 🙂