MADE:

Now that Thanksgiving leftovers are FINALLY gone, we have been able to get creative again in the kitchen. We've had Succotash with Grilled Scallops and Parsley Drizzle (pictured,) and Fusilli with Sausage, Artichokes, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes. As I am writing this, Juan is mixing up some Sweet Basil Smoothies and tommorow's plan for dinner is either Chicken Chili or Blue-rugula Burgers. Ever since we moved to Philadelphia, we've relied on the Food Network website to help us with dinner ideas. I'm telling you, start a recipe box (it's free!) and start experimenting. We use it to plan out our weekly meals and for the past 2 years, we've LOVED almost everything we make. I think the trick is to sort recipes by "rating"; every 5-star recipe we've made has been a big hit. Anyway, that's my little plug for FoodNetwork.com



I've been feelin' crafty, too. This is a carseat cover for a friend who is visiting her parents here in Philly. She says she sees them all over Utah and that she wants one. I told her that I received two adorable carseat covers from my mom and Juan's aunt when Qiana was born but that I couldn't part with either; so I decided to make one for her. It was my first attempt at a satin-stitch. I love that my 20+ year-old Singer sewing machine works for projects like this. (There are only two stitch capabilities on that beast: straight line and zig-zag.) Anyway, making the little owl applique took up about 80% of the whole project, but eventually I got the hang of it.

And just for fun, this was from my day today: I was folding laundry while this little sweetie-pie
made a bunch of spit bubbles through her little grin.