"Get You Back" by Nichole Cooper

My ridiculously talented and beautiful friend Nichole Cooper has made a major step in her dream of becoming a music star and produced her first music video. Nichole & I have been friends for years and I am so so proud of all that she has accomplished on the road to stardom thus far. Please check out her video for "Get You Back" on YouTube!

.Recipe of the week,

There isn't one. I'm still too darn full of leftovers to even write about heavy food right now! Ha! For inspiration: we're having a nice fresh salad with micro greens and a homemade vinaigrette tonight to lighten things up.

.And I'm back.

I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving! After much cooking and cleaning we were able to enjoy a wonderful day with family, friends, & food. The menu: fresh spinach salad with pears & hazelnuts {Oregon's state nut}, chardonnay brined & herb buried turkey, homemade stuffing with leeks/bacon/cranberries/chestnuts, Yukon gold mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole {my moms specialty and my very favorite thing at every Thanksgiving table}, haricots verts {French green beans] with mushrooms & shallots, rosemary buttermilk artisan rolls, homemade cornbread {made by Meegan}, & gluten-free gravy {made by Tom} with pumpkin sweet potato pie, country apple pie, & pumpkin gingerbread trifle for dessert. Do I even need to say that I have been in a food coma for close to a week thanks to this? Eesh.
The day after Thanksgiving was the first time in weeks that Cheyenne & I had a day off and it was pure bliss. Amelia slept in 90 minutes {all of the previous days festivities wore her out} then we spent the whole day munching on leftovers and watching football - aka heaven. No we did not partake in the gross madness which is "Black Friday", I find the whole idea totally horrifying and greatly encourage everyone to purchase your gifts from local independent merchants and support your community instead of buying from giant corporate box stores that get their poorly made crap from China.
Over the weekend I worked and we fit in time to get Amelia's Christmas portraits taken so cards should go out fairly soon {in theory}. This weekend we are making our annual trek out to the Christmas tree farm to chop down the Griswald Clark Family Christmas Tree and in the coming weeks we also have the Zoo Lights, Pioneer Square, Peacock Lane, & a visit to Santa at Bridegport Village!

.Truth.

Day 20something {I forget where I left off}.

Today as I prep all of the food that I can before the big day tomorrow and clean and run last minute errands I am very grateful that even though it's a lot of work I am able to host Thanksgiving every year.
I have a lot of friends that spend Thanksgiving having to go from location to location in order to see their family and after all of that running around they never get to see their friends or let their food digest or just relax.
I am so thankful that I get to spend the entire day enjoying the things that I love most {family, friends, & cooking} while in my favorite place on Earth {my cozy home with the fire blazing and the magnificent smells of the holidays} and I get to stuff myself silly with all of the foods that I love the most and I can take breaks to enjoy some yummy wine and catch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the National Dog Show and of course the HAR-BOWL which is a giant huge deal in this 49er's loving Ravens hating house this year.
I hope that whereever you are and whatever your plans tomorrow that you have a safe and truly happy Thanksgiving!

.Day 20.

Today with so much left to do before Thanksgiving I am very thankful that I live so close to my parents & friends and that they can babysit Amelia for an hour or so here and there this week while I get everything prepped. Thank you Sherri, Will, & Abigail!

.Day 19.

Day 19 of thankfulness - After working so much this weekend I am so very thankful that in the *real world* I am a full time stay at home mom and don't have to work outside of the home until we as a family choose.
I have always been 100% confident that the choice to stay at home was the very best one for myself and my family but I can now say that I have tried the flip side of things {although thankfully only temporarily} and although it is a harder job to be a SAHM it's also infinitely more rewarding.

.Is it Monday yet?.

Since Thursday night {it is now Monday afternoon} I have had 12 hours of sleep. As you remember I am working on the weekends through November & December and this weekend was a doozy. In order to get Elephants set up for the holidays a team of people have to work almost around the clock for 5 solid days 3 times in an 8 week period. Yes, there is THAT much  detail. Obviously this means that as of today I am crazy-town exhausted but on the flip side it also means that I got an insane amount of hours in a very short amount of time and I got to do it while working with some of my very dearest friends which really isn't so bad.
I have to say that after 3 days of 16+ hour shifts I am beyond ready to get in some quality time with my husband and little girl.
Also, I have Thanksgiving to host in 3 days and still need to grocery shop and clean my house for company. Who needs sleep right?

.TGIF.

Thanksgiving {my very favorite holiday after my birthday} is less than a week away! Eeee! Here is a great Thanksgiving inspired cocktail from Cocktail Times! Cheers!

Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:

1 ounce Malibu rum

3/4 ounce pumpkin pie filling

1/2 ounce Kahlua

2 ounces cold milk

cinnamon, for garnish

Directions:

Mix ingredients in blender with ice and blend thoroughly; Pour into graham cracker-rimmed highball glass and garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

.Was that all?.

The last couple of weeks have been marked with Amelia having trouble sleeping. Our little girl takes after her daddy and has always been a very consistent and easy sleeper that can sleep through anything.
However around Halloween she started to fuss and cry a bit when put down for the night and then around the same time started waking up screaming and crying in the middle of the night. That hasn't happened in I don't even know how long and since it's highly unusual we took turns getting out of bed to try to sooth her and figure out the cause. Cheyenne & I have been walking around like zombies due to the lack of decent sleep and Amelia has been an all out monster because of it.
We've been going over various theories, consulted books and doctors and websites and decided that it was one of three things: 1) she was having nightmares thanks to helping pass out candy on Halloween {a few of the kids were in masks that freaked her out something awful} 2) she was having some separation anxiety due to my recent weekend job 3) it was the product of a developing imagination.
The first two ideas were mine and the third {more logical you'll notice} was Cheyennes. I have been laying awake at night while she cries it out or while rocking her or while laying on the couch with her beating myself up mentally because of the first two options {the Halloween thing had been my idea}. I spent the very vast majority of my life tormented by a fear of the dark and nightmares and I have done everything possible to try and keep Amelia away from anything that could cause that to happen to her. The idea of her suffering through that and the resulting mornings of crippling tiredness was just too awful to think about. I've been super stressed out by that. The other option of it being separation anxiety because of a job that is helpful but not necessary {and therefore a choice} also filled me with extreme mommy guilt. It's been a sh** couple of weeks to say the least.
However, I noticed a couple of days ago that when she woke up from her nap her head was covered in sweat. Remembering that, I turned the thermostat down a few degrees the next night and the night after and switched out her fleece blanket to a more breathable linen one.
Ta-da! She slept through the night{s}! All of that beating myself up was for nothing....she was just hot and uncomfortable. Duh! I blame this all on my total inability to think properly on less than 9 hours of sleep...and my tendency to overthink small things. Oh motherhood.

,Day 18.

Day 18: Today I'm thankful for the occasional girls night outs that I allow myself. I have really great girl friends {Abigail, Holly, Meegan, Kylie & Margie} and on the nights when we get together for drinks and yummy food we all laugh so hard that we are certain we're going to hyperventilate and die. There are few things in life as satisfying to the soul as a good laugh and some juicy gossiping with your ladies.

.Helping.

Two days ago while I was doing the dishes I asked Amelia to pick up her toys {they litter the floors in multitude}. After a while I realized that her noise making had totally ceased. I peeked into the living room and found this...

Apparently, tearing open a box of outlet covers and scattering them around like Easter eggs can tire a girl out.

.TGITh.

Since I missed last Fridays drink recipe here is a midweek {and alcohol free} one in it's place thanks to Oh She Glows. Cheers!

Pumpkin Gingerbread Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond milk, plus a bit more if necessary
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
• 1 tbsp blackstrap molasses
• 1 small frozen banana
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• pinch nutmeg
• Ice, if desired

Directions:

1. Soak the oats, almond milk, and chia seeds for at least an hour or overnight. This helps them digest better and it also gives the smoothie a smoother texture.

2. Place all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth. Add ice if desired.

.Recipe of the week - belated.

As you know I've been out of commission thanks to a certain someone destroying my laptop keyboard. Well, I'm back {as if you couldn't tell by the previous 17 posts}! Without further ado I give you this weeks recipe thanks to Pinch of Yum

Baked Apple Pancake with Apple Cider Syrup

Ingredients

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups apple cider
• cinnamon sticks
• 1 large unpeeled apple, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 4 eggs (can sub egg whites for some of the eggs)
• 2/3 cup skim milk
• 2/3 cup bread flour (can sub all-purpose or whole wheat)
• 2 tablespoons applesauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar

Directions:

1. Bring the apple cider, 1 cup brown sugar, and cinnamon sticks to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 30 minutes, until reduced by about 1/3. Set aside and let cool.
2. Preheat the oven to 350. Combine the apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Arrange in the bottom of a buttered 9-inch pie plate.
3. Whisk the rest of the ingredients until just combined and pour the mixture over the apples. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until top is browned and set. Remove from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes.
4. Using a knife, loosen the edges of the pancake from the pie plate. When loose, invert onto a serving platter and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Top with syrup!

Notes

-For super thin apples, use a mandoline slicer. It makes for awesome layers.
- best results using a pie plate instead of a cast-iron skillet.
-Do not try to add melted butter to the batter. It falls apart. But DO add butter after it’s baked! Yum!

 

.Day 16.

Day 17: Great food. I am a total foodie and am so thankful for all of the great restaurants and food carts of this city as well as the farmers markets & high quality grocery stores that allow me access to amazing ingredients to use in all manner of recipes.

.Day 16,

Day 16: Today, and every day, I am thankful not to have the last name Kardashian, Lohan, or Hilton and I'm thankful for an upbringing that made sure I have nothing in common with those that do have one of those names.

.Day 15.

Day 15: How have I not done this yet? I am so very thankful for my pets! I'm obviously thankful for the magnificent Josie & Sully who complete our family and help make our house the chaotic mess and loving home that it is. Im also thankful for all of the other pets that have come and gone: Rowdy, CC, Hershey, Elvis, Charlie, Cassius Clay, El Jeffe, and of course the most wonderful of them all - Feltch {I still feel a little bad for naming him that}.

.Day 14.

Day 14: The green of the Pacific Northwest. I am thankful for the vibrant greenery that I get to see smell all year around. Im thankful that I have never had to own an ice/snow scraper for my car or snow tires for that matter. Im thankful for a childhood that didnt involve trick or treating in the snow. Im thankful for sumers with soft grass for my toes to wiggle in. Im also thankful to be an hour away from the winter wonderland which is Mt Hood for those occasions when I need a snow fix and 90 minutes from the coast when I need a sand fix.

.Day 13.

Day 13: Books! Is there anything better than reading? Probably not. I find nothing sexier than a reader and nothing more repellent than a self proclaimed "non-reader". I could easily live out the rest of my days in Powell's City of Books and be happy for every second.

.Day 12.

Day 12: Domesticity - Today I am thankful for my prowess at all things domestic. I know how archaic that may sound but it's true. I have many friends that don't know how to cook or keep a home on an even basic level. I am thankful for my ability to cook just about anything that I've set my mind to, clean my house top to bottom without the use of poisons, and turn a house into a cozy home. I think the very basics are an absolute must for any child that I raise {male or female; cooking & cleaning and the like are not "girl jobs" and if you think that they are then you are an ass} to master before leaving my home at 18 and entering adulthood.

.Day 11.

Day 11: The jobs - I am very thankful for Cheyenne's amazing job. I am thankful that Monday-Friday he wakes up and goes to a job that he genuinely likes and fulfills him. I'm thankful for the salary, benefits, and security that it provides and allows me to have the best job in the world. As for my job, I am very thankful that Cheyenne and I have arranged our lives to provide Amelia with a stay at home parent during these most important years. There are sacrifices of course but to me they are all so worth it if it means that my child is raised by me and not a sitter.

.Day 10.

Day 10: Speaking of "home", today {well, everyday} I am thankful for my house. I am so thankful that I have it's warmth in the winter and it's fantastic yard in the summer. I'm thankful to be so near the center of my beloved city yet far enough away to have a quiet street and friendly neighbors. In a time and place where homelessness seems to be even higher I am very thankful for these walls and roof that safely keep my family.

.Day 9.

Day 9: Portland. I say it every year because our anniversary is this month and so it's on my mind. I am so thankful for all that this city has given me: my childhood, my youth, my love, my child. Home to me is just another word for Portland.

.Day 8.

Day 8: I know how this is going to sound but hear me out: I'm thankful for my brain. Yeah that's right, I'm givin' a shout out to my smarts. Normally I would think that such a thing is very egotistical and revolting but I honestly don't mean it that way. What I mean is....well, watch an episode of Jersey Shore and you'll get my point. I don't think that I am the smartest gal out there but I am proud to say that I'm educated and always try to learn new things and grow. A person that refuses to learn or finds stupidity attractive sickens me and I find them totally intolerable and if it's a fellow woman then I find it utterly offensive. I am happy and proud to say that I am a smart woman and if you too are a smart woman then I hope you are thankful for all that that means in a world where many woman do not have access to books, formal education, and broader views. Don't be a Snooki be an Eleanor!

.Damn Kids,

"Damn kids" was one of my Nanas favorite sayings and now that I have a toddler I find myself muttering it a lot these days. Perhaps you've been wondering where I went and why I haven't been posting.
Well, while I was doing the dishes the other day Peanut decided to open my laptop and rip up over half of the keys. Awesome! I have ordered a new keyboard but in the meantime I've had to coax about 8 of the keys back on {including the space bar} just to be able to type this out. My other options include the PC but it's in Cheyennes "office" aka the garage and I'd rather not take Amelia in there while my attention isn't fully on her OR I can use Cheyenne's laptop but he takes it to work and I've been too tired to blog in the evenings. So there ya go. My new keyboard should arrive soon and when it does, expect a ton of catch-up posts all at once.
In the meantime here are some photos of the Perp & the destruction {keyboard photos taken today, after I put 8 keys back on so that you can see what Im working with to type this post}. Also of note: when Amelia goes into destruction mode she likes to sport her sunglasses and call herself "Hot Stuff" or "Haussuf" as it were.

.Day 7.

We continue...

Today I am thankful for technology & social networking. First of all my husband's job that he loves and that allows me to be a stay at home mom is thanks to the tech industry and I am grateful every day for that job. I'm happy and grateful that thanks to the tech field Cheyenne has a job that he loves - a lot of my friends cannot say the same about their jobs and we are very thankful that Cheyenne loves his. I am always thankful for his job but even more so now because there are so many people in this country and all over the world that are desperate for work.
As for social networking I have to say that although I find Mark Zuckerberg to be one of the least appealing humans I can think of, Facebook has allowed me to connect with and bond with friends and family who are far away on a level that I never was when we had to rely solely on the phone. Thanks to Facebook, Gmail, Picasa, Twitter, YouTube, & of course Blogger my extended family and far away friends are able to have a better view of daily life for my daughter as she grows up then they were with me when I was growing up. I'm so thankful that this blog allows me to easily share photos and stories of our life on an almost daily basis with those that I love that I don't get to see nearly enough.
I'm also selfishly thankful for this blog in particular for helping me document the last two and a half years {can you believe it???} in a way that I never would have with a journal. I'm so thankful that I can now go back and read through old pregnancy posts with their details that I never would have remembered had I not written it down and all of the little updates on how my child has grown and what was going on in our personal lives. It's awesome and I always encourage anyone that I can to do the same, it's been a wonderful experience for me and I'm very thankful for it.

.Recipe of the week.

Since it's already November 7th I sent out my Thanksgiving invitations today. Every year we host Thanksgiving here because 1. I like my food the best 2. I love entertaining 3. I love being able to be in one place with those that I love without having to get bundled up and go somewhere else in order to see everyone on that day {same goes for Christmas}. Ask anyone that knows me and they will confirm that I do in fact start planning my Thanksgiving menus 6 months in advance. I love pouring over notes from the previous year and finding new recipes and ways to improve old ones and making my shopping lists and planning the look of the table and such. Heaven.
So, this year when going through apple-based desserts I came across this recipe from Testado Provado & Aprovado for individual apple pies within an apple. How stinking cute are these!? I had them on the list of desserts almost immediately however, after really thinking of all that I have to do that day food-wise I think that they would be better suited to a more casual autumn dinner. They're still so great though that I just had to share them with all of you. Enjoy!

Apple pie in an apple

Ingredients:

8 apples {I prefer Honeycrisp but use whatever variety that you like}

Fresh lemon juice {to keep apples from browning}

1 tablespoon {give or take a bit to taste} apple pie spice

6 tablespoon sugar

6 tablespoons flour

8 tablespoons {1 stick} of unsalted butter

Pie dough {I use the America's Test Kitchen recipe but use whatever recipe that you like or even store-bought if baking isn't your "thang"}

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees

2. Roll dough out to even thickness then place on cookie sheet or cutting board in the fridge to chill while you prepare the filling.

3. Wash apples then cut a "lid" off of the top of each {see photo}. Scoop the innards from the base of each apple with a spoon or ice cream scoop then chop into pea sized pieces and place in a bowl {leaving our seeds and core}. Chop up the "lids" into pea sized pieces and add them to the bowl as well. rub a bit of lemon juice into the insides of each apple  to keep them from turning brown while you prepare the filling.

4. Mix the chopped up apple bits, apple pie seasoning, sugar, and flour together then fill each hollowed out apple. Top each apple with 1 tablespoon of butter.

5. Remove dough from fridge and using a cookie cutter cut out tops for the apples {the original recipe used a flower shape but I think that these leaf cutters from WilliamS Sonoma are much cuter for Fall}. Remember to poke a couple of holes in each piece of dough to allow steam to vent.

6. Place your dough piece on the apples then brush with an egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Place apples on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for roughly 40 minutes. Enjoy!

.Day 6.

The Crew - My friends kick some serious a**. I have some truly amazing friends: I have the friends as close as sisters/brothers {Amanda, Jerome, David G, David P, Holly, Meegan}, the friends that I trust with my daughter's life {David A & Abigail}, the friends that inspire me {Kevin, Alaya, Kiki, Maureen}, the friends that make me happy to be in the "mommy clique" {Jessica, Wendy, Judy, Erin}, the friends that have known me since before puberty {Emily, Josh, Alicia}, the friend that gets to see me cry {Marge} -side note: I'm not "a crier"- and of course there are all of the others that I love truly but for time reasons I couldn't list everyone out. All of these people have been known to make me laugh until I cried, supported me in my dark times, and overall made me a very lucky woman just being able to say that I keep such great company. Much love to all of you wonderful people.

.Day 5.

Thankful list continues...

My extended family - I have to say that I have an amazing network of grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Sadly, we're separated by far too many miles and don't get to see each other enough. However, I am so in love with them all and so grateful for each person and what they bring to my life. For all of those that fall into this category please know that I think about each one of you every day and love you very very much.

.Day 4.

The thankfulness list continues. I compiled the whole 24 days into a list before I started so I could keep track. Turns out that the first few are no brainers....but still important.

The 'rents -Of course my parents. Separately they are known as Sherri, Will, & Renee aka Grammy, Papa, & Gramma Renee. They are all the best. My mom and dad each come over every single week without fail to play with Peanut and for the entire length of each persons visit that child's feet do not touch the ground. My mother in law {Renee} isn't lucky enough to live in Portland but when she's visiting us or we're visiting her the same could be said about Amelia's feet not touching the ground.
Their collective love for her is so palpable that in January on Amelia's birthday when we had all of the grandparents and friends and family over for the big day my bestie came over to me and said "I'm so blown away and a little jealous of the overwhelming amount of love that child has. I want to go give her kisses and hugs but each grandparents swoops in as soon as the other two get distracted. I haven't gotten a single photo of Amelia that doesn't include a grandparent loving on her." Isn't that great? I love that. I love how much these three people adore this creature that is my world.
In addition to these three being the greatest grandparent trifecta ever they are also the three greatest parents. I know everyone believes that their own parents are the greatest ever, and perhaps we're all kind right. But in the last week I have to say, all three of these people have been amazing and really made me realize even more how truly privileged I am to have them in my corner. I love you.

.TGIF.

Ah, it's Friday, isn't that nice? We've had a much better week here at Chez Clark {again, thank you to everyone for your love last week. I'm doing much much better}. We learned that Cheyenne will have to go to New Zealand for a couple of weeks in January for business and then to Australia for a week or two in April in addition to the long weekend that he'll be in Hawaii as best man in our friends wedding. Looks like Little Miss and Mama will be flying solo a few times this year. The timing is a bit crummy because January is when Amelia's birthday is & April is when my {30th} birthday is. We don't know the specific dates of travel yet but there's the chance that one or both birthdays will be celebrated a bit late. We both started to get upset by that and at the same time realized how really really fortunate at this time in our country we are for Cheyenne to have such a great job - the bitching about travel promptly stopped.
But on that note a cocktail is in order. Since I'm always in the mood for something festive I thought this would be perfect. Cheers!

.Recipe from How Sweet It Is.

Apple Cider Margarita

Ingredients:

1 ounce Grand Marnier

1 ounce gold tequila

5-6 ounces sweet apple cider

orange segments and apple slices

cinnamon + cane sugar + coarse sugar for glass rimming

cinnamon sticks for garnish

Directions:

Add a few spoonfuls of cane sugar, coarse sugar and cinnamon to a plate. Run an orange segment around the edge of the glass, then press into the cinnamon sugar mixture to coat the rim. Add a few orange slices in the bottom of the glass, fill with ice, then add the Grand Marnier, tequila and apple cider and stir to mix. Garnish with apple slices and cinnamon sticks. Enjoy!

Note: As a rule, I generally prefer silver tequila in my margaritas, but the gold here really gives a “warmth” that matches the cider and cinnamon perfectly.

.Day 3.

The 28 days of thankfulness continues...

The husband -You knew it was next right? I love that man to bits. He's awesome and is the absolute perfect mate for me. I have written and rewritten paragraphs listing the things about him that I love and none of it really captures what I feel, because there are literally no words. Just know that every cell in my body and fiber of my being is totally and completely thankful for Cheyenne Clark every day of my life. As the eloquent Mr. Darcy said "I will have to tell you: you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you."

.And on that note.

{click to enlarge}