foggy fall monday

It's foggy here, super foggy. It's as if everything is still outside except the birds and squirrels in our backyard. And that's only because my husband insists of feeding them every morning. Willa is already snoozing away and I've been able to catch up on some much missed blog reading and online this and that. Lots of fun things to share:

Beautiful advice on motherhood (via Cup of Joe).

Love this holiday wrapping paper.

I'm still obsessed with Sunol and yet they still remain a mystery band despite all my research.

Crochet Jewelry. I'd like some.

Wabi Sabi.

Modern Thanksgiving tablescape.

Suede winter sandal. Add it to the wishlist.

And Willa is up.

photo

Sunset Meals

I love Sunset Magazine. It's always a great day when the mailman delivers it. Even though I live many, many states away from the Western ones (sniff, sniff) I still take my favorite magazine and try out most of the recipes. Now, they are always pretty good... but the last two months have been insanely good. October was filled with one-dish dinners (who needs to make two dishes when you only have to make one?! Um, mom's with newborns). Also in October, lots of recipes that incorporate exotic spices. I made the most delicious chicken dish. And I don't even like chicken most of the time. It was amazing. I served it with a small side of butternut squash soup and frozen garlic naan from TJ's.

Bengali Five-Spice Roasted Chicken

Click here for recipe.

*I marinated the chicken overnight.

Dwell-orable.

Dwell Studio just came out with their new organic layette collection for babies. Hello, cuteness! Willa is going to be sportin' some new duds in no time. If only I had the same new wardrobe that she does.

Willa goes to the polls!

Yep, that's right... Willa is a patriotic baby exercising her right to vote at an early age. It was a pretty exciting morning and I know her granddaddy's would be proud. We even met another baby while waiting in line who was five days younger than Willa. Nothing like a newborn getting involved in politics. Who says you need to be 35 to run for President?!

Unfortunately, this was the only photo we were able to take of Willa's first experience at the polls. No cameras allowed inside... booo.

Willa the Zebra

I dressed Willa up as a zebra for her first trick-or-treat experience. From what I could tell, I think she enjoyed the festivities but wasn't very pleased about wearing her cute little zebra cap. But we couldn't have let her be a maneless, earless zebra now could we?! She sure helped bring in the tasty sugar treats for her parents.

Um... hello pumpkin! Look at that dimple!!

Yummmm... Butternut Squash Lasagna

It's official, I have become a casserole mom. I get it now. With limited time to whip up dinner these days I'm all about casserole creations and slow cooker recipes. So what if I'm prepping my dinner around 3:30 pm?! Makes bath time and feeding time that much more enjoyable when all you have to do is pull something out of the oven and pour a glass of wine a few hours later. Here's what I whipped up last night and it was delicious:

Butternut Squash Lasagna

Ingredients:

- 2 bags of frozen butternut squash (microwave until thawed and mash with a fork)

- 32 once of part skim ricotta

- 3 handfuls of fresh chopped spinach

- 1 yellow onion (I prefer a sweet onion)

- 2 c of shredded mozzarella

- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg, cinnamon, garam masala (all these spices are optional)

- 12 lasagna noodles (regular or no-bake)

Method:

- boil noodles for 4-5 minutes if needed

- saute onion until golden

- mix ricotta, spinich & onion. salt to taste.

- add desired spices to squash puree. salt to taste (i used a good amount as it was quite bland).

- Layer noodles, ricotta, noodles, squash, mozzarella. Continue order until you have reached the top of your casserole dish

- cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes in a 425 degree oven

- remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes until cheese is golden brown

Baby Willa

I disappeared, but with good reason. Baby Willa joined the world seven weeks ago and life hasn't ever been so sweet. She surprised her mommy & daddy four weeks early and boy were we caught off guard! At 3:00 am on Wednesday, August 25th I awoke to my water breaking (it was really more of a trickle, but who needs all the gorey details?!). We laid in bed trying to wrap our head around what was happening... four weeks early, what the heck?! Jon and I were both so excited, but also a little nervous and as strange as it sounds we laid in bed for a few more hours and I fell back asleep. At 7:00 am, Jon jumped out of bed and said "Let's do this! Start packing... I have to put the stroller together!". Seriously. So, I called our midwife to find out if we needed to come into the hospital because I wasn't having strong contractions yet. She wanted us to come in and so we packed our bags, ate a big breakfast and off we went. I was 3 cm & 100% effaced when I got to the hospital and we were told we had to stay at the hospital because my water had broken and there was a risk of infection. I wasn't really feeling much in the way of contractions and I was nervous that they might induce me. Luckily, the midwife assured me that we had several hours until that would need to happen. We moved into our labor & delivery room and we set our music up and Jon helped me get comfortable. We were giggling the entire time.

My parents were already on a plane headed to see their soon to be grandbaby. Jon's mom & sister came by the hospital which helped pass the time. They were so excited about the new baby... I walked around the halls with my sister-in-law trying to progress the labor and she was sweet enough to rub my back. Things slowly started to pick up and my back started to ache pretty badly. Around 4 pm I was only 4 cm... ugh. Just when I thought they were going to have to give me some pitocin, Willa started to get antsy and things picked up in a big way. Each contraction was getting stronger and it became hard to talk through them. By 7 pm my parents arrived and they were so excited! I don't think I've ever seen such happy grins on their faces. I started to rely in Jon quite a bit as labor picked up... I kept trying to figure out which position was best, but I soon realized that I was going to feel every contraction strongly no matter how I was sitting. Around 9 pm, eighteen hours after my water broke I started shaking uncontrollably. The midwife told me I was a little past 6 cm and she encouraged me to take a hot shower. What, a shower?! I was so cold from shaking and decided that a shower might help the shivers go away. The hot water on my belly and back felt so good and I started to relax a little. Jon sat next to me and he reminded me to keep breathing and about an hour later (yes, I was still in the shower) I felt the most insane sensation to push. I have never felt anything so strong in my life... I couldn't breath anymore and all I could do was push, even though I knew I shouldn't yet. Jon and the midwife got me back to the bed and after a few minutes, the midwife checked me and and said "Courtney, when you are ready I want you to push! You're going to see your baby very soon". Jon put some new music on, Jim James of course. He held my hand and I pushed for the next hour until little Willa was here. When she finally arrived, she was so beautiful... she laid on my chest crying and with her wide eyes looked at Jon and I. We were in total love.