First day of School

Today was a pretty big day in our house - it was Madeleine's first day of Kindergarten.  She has been alternating between being excited and being nervous.  More nervous the last week or so as many of her friends from daycare have been leaving.

So proud of her though.  She got up this morning, put on her new outfit and headed right down for breakfast.  She ate, we had time for pictures and then on the bus she went!  She claims to have had a good time but we'll see what happens when she has to get back on the bus Monday for the first full week!

All dressed up and ready to go!

Posing with her little brother

No My-nee!  Don't go!!

Excited to be home

"What did you do today Madeleine?"

"I don't remember Mommy"

Pittsburgh Zoo

I have always loved going to the zoo.  Not entirely sure why, but I do love walking around and seeing all the different animals.  When I was little, my mom would take me to the Stone Zoo quite often, which really was a pathetic little zoo but it was only a couple of towns over.  Now that the kids are getting older, I can indulge my love of the zoo enrich my children's lives by exposing them to animals from all around the world.  Up until this summer, Madeleine had been to the zoo in Denver, Minneapolis and St. Louis.  Not bad for a 5 year old.  Since we've only ever been to Pittsburgh in the winter, it is the first opportunity I've had to take them here.

We went the day before the 4th of July, right before the heat wave descended on most of the United States.  It was pretty warm when we went, but Nana bought them hats and fans at the first gift shop and they were happy campers.

We saw the typical lions and tigers ... the bears were being lazy and hiding indoors.  My favorite was the elephants.  I got some really nice shots:

We also got to hang out with a new friend named Victoria.

This guy had the right idea as it did get a little toasty:

"Big teef mommy!  Bite you!!"



All in all we had a good day.  We were able to cover the whole zoo in about 3 hours before it got really crowded and the heat kicked in.  It was a good start to a great vacation.  Next stop: Sesame Place.

Mashed Potaotes with Blue Cheese and Parsley

One thing I am very fortunate for is the fact I have 2 kids that are really not picky eaters.  Sure, given the choice they would claim they want to eat french fries all the time but they are very good about trying new things.

Madeleine's favorite salad dressing is blue cheese.  Kind of odd that 1)  she does eat a big ole plate of salad willingly and 2) it has to have blue cheese dressing on it.  The little guy is following right in her footsteps, and always has to make sure it is on the table in case he has something he needs to dip. 

This recipe is not for those that don't like blue cheese.  With a whole cup of crumbled blue cheese in there the flavor is pretty prominent.  These go great with grilled steaks and sauteed mushrooms.

Mashed Potatoes with Blue Cheese and Parsley
Cooking Light, January 2001

2  pounds  red potatoes -- cut into 2-inch chunks
2 garlic cloves -- peeled
1 cup  crumbled blue cheese
1/3 cup  1% low-fat milk
2 tablespoons  chopped fresh parsley
1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper

Place potatoes and garlic in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil; cook 15 minutes or until tender. Drain. Place potato mixture and remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Mash to desired consistency.

Yield:  8 1/2-cup servings

Summer Vacation 2011

For the first time in a LONG time we actually went away someplace for longer than a weekend.  At the beginning of July we embarked on the Northeast Tour which took us east to PA and then over to Boston and even up into Maine.  We were gone for a glorious 17 days and there was no cooking, no cleaning and best of all no work involved!  We must have had a good time since I had 600+ pictures to go through and edit and I am only about halfway done.

We started off by spending 4 days outside of Pittsburgh where David is from.  We essentially relaxed at his parents house, went to the zoo and to a 4th of July party.  The weather was nice and the kids had the opportunity to spend a lot of time lounging by the little pool.

Striking a pose:

He needs to use his belly to shoot the water gun:

Resting from a hard afternoon of swimming:

Attempting to keep his post swim snack of Cheez-balls away from Gus:

I'm already plotting a course for a two week vacation for next summer.