Beth's Wedding Sneak Peak

My sister-in-law got married over the weekend in Winona, MN. Here are a few sneak peak photos from my mom's iPhone (thank you Mom and Dad, we couldn't have done the wedding without you). I barely took any photos, so we'll have to wait for the professionals. A picture of the bride, you ask... it will come with the professional shots. :)

My brother-in-law Adam, my godson Evan, and Nina and I. Don't you love the seersucker outfits?

Peacock headbands :)

Our family in church. 

Seven Months

As of April 13th, Nina is seven months old! I took this photo a few weeks ago, but am now getting around to posting it. She's becoming such a sweet, happy girl full of personality and fun! It really is a blessing.

Happy weekend.

Antipasto Skewers

Here's a snapshot of the easiest and most delicious appetizer you could make. Perfect for summer. I forget to snap a photo of the finished product, but here's how it's done.

* Skewer your favorite antipasto ingredients. I used basil, olives, mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, pepperoni, tortellini, green olives and artichokes.

* Serve with a pesto dip. While I'd usually just garnish with sea salt, pepper, evoo and good balsamic, this dip is worth it!

Pesto Dip
2/3 c. plain yogurt
1/2 c. mayo
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 T red wine vinegar
1/3 c. pesto

Miami Vacation!

We recently traveled to Miami for our annual vacation with my parents. We had a super relaxing and fun time at Turnberry Isle Resort - very luxurious, but family friendly! This post is long, but there were so many fun moments I had to share.

Nina took her first plane trip and did great! She sucked on her little pacifier, took a short nap, played with toys and was passed around. She really enjoyed sitting on the aisle so she could people watch.

Mr. Evans and my dad golfed one morning while I had a massage at the spa. The photos below are from dinner at Michael Mina's Bourbon Steak. Most people would think it's a bit fancy for a baby, but we dined appropriately earlier, ate great food, had a wine tasting with the sommelier, and were in bed by 9:30! :)

Nina and I... I love this little daughter of mine with all my being.

 A little family action poolside. We loved the pools, lazy river and the beach. So many options!

Nina is a warm weather lover, just like her momma. And don't you love her fuchsia Ray Bans?

Grandpa with a cigar, cell phone and Long Island. Typical. :) 

Nina LOVED the water! Seriously she LOVED splashing around, wading in the wader and didn't mind one bit if a little water got in her eyes. It might be something to do with the fact that we give her a bath every night due to her reflux and messy spit ups... nonetheless, she had a blast and I was proud. 

We also spent lots of time drinking Mojito's. Our favorite was on Ocean Drive in South Beach at a restaurant called A Fish Called Avalon.

Baby painted toenails

We spent last week in Miami and I am just getting around to preparing a blog post. In the meantime, here's a sneak peak of our pre-trip preparations!

Easy Breakfast

Looking for a quick and easy, make ahead breakfast? These freezer burritos are the perfect answer. Mr.Evans usually drinks a protein shake for breakfast, but when he's looking for something a bit more hearty I'm glad to have these ready-to-go. Also, I like to grab one once and a while, too. I
Here's how I made them.

- Saute one diced onion, one green pepper and one package of breakfast sausage (or use ground turkey). Once cooked, add 12 or so eggs and scramble.
- Spread out your tortillas (12+), add a few spoonfuls of the egg mixture and top with cheese.
- Roll up into burrito pockets and wrap in Press and Seal.
- Store in a freezer safe ziploc bag.
- To reheat, unwrap and roll loosely in a piece of paper towel. Microwave for about 90 seconds.

Don't forget to customize - add hot sauce, skip the cheese, add a spoonful of salsa, maybe some spinach... it's up to you!

Easter Post ... Delayed

We celebrated our Evans family Easter on Saturday.

Nina loved her first Easter basket from here.

Getting ready to go by Meemaw and Grandbear's house for an Easter Egg Hunt and dinner.

Cousins after the egg hunt (and by eggs, I mean toothbrushes, pajamas, pudding cups, candy, etc)!

Momma and Daddy with our little girl (looking very tired at this point). 

On Sunday, we went to church and had a family dinner at my parent's house.

My mom made a Peeps Cake with Marshmallow Frosting!

Hope you all had a great day! Don't you just love spending special holidays with your family?

Five Bits

Happy Monday!

Five Bits is going on hiatus for a bit. :) Sorry... your Monday morning posts will be back soon. Maybe new and improved, with a new angle?

Purple

Happy Monday! I thought I'd share a few photos from our front yard. Our daffodils have come and gone, but now our two front pink trees are blooming and these little blue/purple flowers have sprouted everywhere. Since both of these photos remind me of my favorite color and a good book, I thought I'd share these two passages I really like.

"... have you ever found God in church? I never did. I just found a bunch of folks hoping for him to show. Any God I ever felt in church I brought in with me. And I think all the other folks did too. They come to church to share God, not find God." - Alice Walker, The Color Purple

"I think it pissed God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it." - Alice Walker, The Color Purple

2nd Annual SNC Girls Weekend

I know everyone loves a girls weekend. It's the best, isn't it?

A couple of weekends ago, my college girlfriends and I met up in De Pere for our 2nd Annual Girls Weekend. We had a blast (as always)! We ate and drank far too much, but laughed it all off for sure. Here was our first annual get together. This time around, we stayed at Pam's house (which happens to be just a few houses down the street from our senior off-campus abode... although Pam's house is much nicer).

My friend Sarah posted on our weekend here, here, here and here. :) What fun!

We started out on Friday with Pam's dinner of homemade fish tacos with a cilantro-cabbage slaw, Sarah's margaritas and Megan's easy Mexican appetizer. For dessert, we ate Pam's Key Lime Cheesecake, Angela and Lauren's Smore Bars, and Sarah's Peanut Butter-Oatmeal-Choc Chip Cookies... with wine of course! Dinner (seriously, we had a TON of food), laughing, drinks and bed! :) 

On Saturday, we ate breakfast and headed out for a walk around campus. So much has changed in the few years since we graduated, so it was fun to check it all out. We then headed to our fav coffee stop (Luna Cafe), and headed back to Pam's house for lunch. Sarah made this soup with bread bowls. A few hours later we had apps and drinks (again, haha), and then went to dinner at local bar/restaurant. Of course, we hit up some of our college bar favorites!

Sunday, we ate breakfast (I make baked oatmeal, homemade poppy seed bread and fruit) and before we knew it, we were headed home. It was a GREAT weekend! I can't wait for next year! You girls are the best.

The girls (minus Sarah who is taking the picture). 

Clockwise: Sarah's soup, knitted cowls from Sarah as a special gift, homemade sangria and apps, Pam's Key Lime Cheesecake

Upper Left Photo: Our senior year college house and roomies (minus Jenna)

Five Bits

1. Ritual is routine infused with mindfulness. It is habit made holy.

2. Our home is the caretaker of our memories. From our windows, our imaginations take wing.

3. To raise a child is an honor. To raise a child well is a gift.

4. We all live in fear of being judged by others, while the empty space between us is waiting to be filled by a simple gesture of honest caring.

5. Great joys make us love the world. Great sadnesses make us understand the world.



** All of today's bits are from Kent Nerburn's Small Graces: The Quiet Gifts of Everyday Life.

Green thumb?

Look what is now in our backyard, thanks to Mr. Evans! It was a surprise when I came home from girls weekend! 

While I'm hopeful it will look like the garden below (from the movie It's Complicated)(insert laughing and sarcasm here), I think I'd have to hire a full-time gardener/landscaper/weeder/waterer/etc. I do not have a green thumb, so we'll see. I could have a green thumb if I chose to dedicate time to learning about temperatures, zones, seasonal plantings, etc, however that's not on my radar this year.

So for now, any tips or tricks? EASY does it.

P.S. Do you remember this movie? Seriously, I'd love her home. I totally agree with this post here. Don't you? What movie set would you live on?

"Stage 2" Baby Food

You may recall, I posted at length about "Stage 1" baby food here. Nina is now over six months, so we're moving on to "Stage 2" food. In my first post, I outlined storage containers, the importance of a good blender, etc. I relied on gut instinct and just made what I thought would be good. She absolutely loved everything I made and it lasted us until about now. For this go around, I decided to make single and combo ingredient choices with new flavors to introduce. I bought Tyler Florence's book Start Fresh and went to town. The book is really fantastic.

Remember, amounts to feed, time of day to feed, and other important bits are up to you - the momma or daddy. In my first post, I recommend a few books I follow for guidelines. They continue to work really well for Nina and I. 

Nina is still eating basic purees of sweet potatoes, bananas, peas and carrots. I also am thinking of adding cauliflower puree and broccoli puree if I need more options. These are the easy ones - roast or steam, add a bit of water and puree. Done.

For some flavor combos, here's what I chose this stage. I know most of these are on the sweeter side, so for some more savory options I'll use my vegetables purees. 

Spinach & Banana Puree
12 oz fresh spinach + 2 bananas + 1/4 c. plain whole fat yogurt + 1/4 c. water (puree in blender)

Banana, Pineapple & Avocado Pudding
1 banana + 1/4 pineapple + 1/2 avocado + 1/2 c. plain whole fat yogurt (puree in blender)

Carrot, Mango & Apple Puree

3 carrots (peeled) + 1 mango (cut in chunks) + 2 apples (halved and cored)
     - For this recipe, roast ingredients in 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Then, puree until smooth.

Roasted Apples & Cinnamon
4 apples (halved and cored) + 1/2 tsp cinnamon + 1 tsp lemon juice
    - For this recipe, roast apples in 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. Then, puree all ingredients.

Five Bits

1. Have the courage of your desire. - george gissing

2. Elbow grease is the best polish - english proverb

3. Even a small star shines in the darkness. - finnish proverb

4. If you wish to reach the highest, begin at the lowest. - publilius syrus

5. Inside of a ring or out, ain't nothing wrong with going down. It's staying down that's wrong. - muhammed ali

Showers!

March has been a full month - full of trips and full of fun memories. The first weekend in March, I was in Chicago for a bachelorette party. The second week, I was in San Diego on business. The third weekend we headed out of town to MN
 for my SIL's first wedding shower. The fourth weekend, we headed to Mr. Evans's hometown for my SIL's second shower. And this weekend - right now - (the fifth in March), I am in De Pere for my second annual SNC girls weekend. More to come on that later! :)

Below are some super fun pictures from both of my SIL Beth's (or Bessie as we all call her) showers. She'll be a beautiful bride and we cannot wait for her big day!

Beth's first shower was on St. Patrick's Day, so Nina wore her themed outfit, bib and bow.
Also, don't you love how big little Evan is getting?
The upper left photo shows toasting glasses I made for Beth's "bachelorette" dinner out. I surprised her at dinner with my homemade little creation. :)

The Evans family girls! What a pretty bride in the center!

(Don't mind Nina's spit up... we can't change bibs fast enough)
 For lunch, we made PW chicken salad on fresh croissants, balsamic tomato pasta salad, fruit salad, tomato/basil/mozz skewers, had a cheese/dried fruit tray and a spinach salad with GOP vinaigrette. For dessert, we had gourmet cupcakes and a sundae bar. Also, the picture in the top right is a four-generation photo - Nina, Mr. Evans, Mary Kay and Grandma Rhea.

Shower Invite from Etsy here! My SIL's color is this pretty turquoise and her theme is whimsy, modern and  retro all at once - just like this invite.