Monthly Archives: May 2012

Easy Pasta Salad

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In the past, I have professed to being somewhat of a poor cook. However, I do have a few good meals up my sleeve, all of which have been handed down from friends or family. This particular dish was introduced to me by my good friend Sarah, who is an amazing cook. It’s easy to throw together at the last minute, or prepare ahead of time and chill in the fridge. It can serve as a side dish or a full entrée. Sarah makes hers with fresh homemade pasta, which can’t be beat, but one can still enjoy the recipe with store-bought.

I buy all of the ingredients from Trader Joe’s, but you can find everything at any grocery store. The ingredients include: whole wheat pasta, marinated mozzarella, mini heirloom tomatoes, fresh basil, olive oil, and garlic salt (the key ingredient). Simply cook the pasta according to the directions on the box, chop the tomatoes and mozzarella as desired, and toss together in a large bowl. You can add your own olive oil to the mixture, but I prefer to use the oil that the mozzarella marinates in since it has all the Italian herbs already mixed in. Toss everything together and add garlic salt and freshly chopped basil to taste – don’t be afraid of the garlic salt! I like to top ours with grated parmesan too. THAT’S IT! And it is delicious! Tim liked it so much that he decided to make it at work, only he added sliced chicken for the firemen.

Aside from the kids, Tim and I have eliminated dairy from our diet, but this dish is a treat that we indulge in from time to time. It’s easy to make and the kids LOVE it. Thank you Sarah, for this awesome recipe, and for introducing me to the magic of garlic salt!

*Check out our friend and favorite photographer’s blog, where she gave our Croissant Bread Pudding a try!

Mother’s Day Away

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Sadly, we are back to reality after four wonderful days in the desert. The kids (all 9 of them) had a blast playing in the pools & water slides, chasing the ducks around the resort, and excitedly waking up to their best friends every morning. The other moms and I enjoyed a peaceful Mother’s Day at The Parker Palm Springs, where were treated to a delicious brunch at Norma’s, and muddled lemonades while lounging poolside. We even managed to put together a book club for the weekend, it was the first time most of us were able to finish a book in such short time! I’ll post more photos from our adventures in the desert, but here are a few C/O instagram…

Nolan’s Hair

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I begrudgingly, and yet spontaneously agreed, to allow Nolan his first haircut. Tim had been pushing for this to happen for a long time now, but I preferred his shaggy look. Our intentions were to simply run into the grocery store to pick up dinner, when Tim suggested that we pop into the barbershop next door “just to check it out”. At that point we were sucked in and there was no backing out. It all happened so quickly; they put Nolan in a booster, turned on some cartoons, and started buzzing away. And so started the waterworks. Nolan was traumatized, as was I…especially when the barber proceeded to put butch wax in his hair and gave him a side part. This will never happen again.

Off to the Desert!

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This year we will be spending Mother’s Day weekend with friends at a time share in Palm Desert! It’s always so nice to get away with other families that have young children; the kids entertain one another, and the big kids get to relax a bit and enjoy watching the little ones play. We love going to the desert, and our plan doesn’t include much more than lounging poolside, barbecuing, and simply having fun with our kids. I’m trying not to sound cheesy, but sometimes the hustle and bustle of everyday life causes us to forget how quickly our kids are growing, so we look forward to time away as an opportunity to re-connect.

The other moms and I have plans for a quiet brunch at another resort on Sunday. Well, it will probably start out quiet, then get louder as the day progresses sans kids! We might even sneak in some vintage shopping while we’re at it. When it came to planning for the weekend escape, there were a few necessities that couldn’t be ignored: sun hats, bright cover-ups, and a couple of new swimsuits for the season…

Mikoh Bottoms, Robin Piccone Top, Body Glove Bikini, Collection Eighteen Hat, H&M Fedora, Steve Madden Cover-up, Brazen Cover-up

If you’re still looking for that perfect Mother’s Day gift, check out my post on The Spa at Island Hotel. Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mamas out there, enjoy your day!! Cheers!!

How Does Your Garden Grow

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“Gardening is how I relax. It’s another form of creating and playing with colors.” – Oscar de la Renta

I, too, truly believe that gardening is an art. While it can can be quite simple to grow leafy vegetables, some of the other kitchen staples can be a bit more challenging and, thus, need nurturing. We had no idea how much went into it; balancing of pH levels, vegetable pairing, fertilizing, pests, etc. Our Garden has been off to a rough start this year. As I have previously mentioned, we’ve had an unusually large amount of rain and very few sunny days. Not exactly prime conditions for gardening. In addition to the weather, we’re running into soil problems, white fly, and snails…

Despite the unfortunate weather conditions, we are beginning to see the light! Our lettuce, kale and arugula have produced large crops, as they prefer partial sunlight anyway. The beets, peas and squash are starting to come around too, and we should hopefully be able to enjoy them soon. Now, if we could just get our beloved heirloom tomatoes to start producing…

Congratulations to Danielle Jalbert on winning the Flowers In May giveaway!!