Deid,
Have I ever professed my love of products with life time warranties? Seeing that little "life time warranty" on a package alone is almost enough to get me to buy it. There's something about knowing the company will stand by their product that makes me throw money at it.
My first experience with such things was my freshman year of college when my beloved Jansport backpack zipper busted. It was the backpack that carried my books for most of high school and the one I traveled around Russia with. So, it had had a good life. But I sent it to Jansport and they sent me a new one. While I was waiting for the new one to arrive I received postcards from my backpack telling me about the camp it was at and how they had zipper races. Kind of cheesy? Yes! But realizing it was direct to the grade school age group and not college students I found the post cards cute. And am a Jansport fan for life.
The lid to my Camelbak water bottle broke last week, so I called and they are sending me a new one. While I haven't received a postcard yet, I am happy I won't have to buy a new one!
Here are some other companies I've heard have great warranties:
Smith Optics
LL Bean's shoes
Land's End kids clothes
Yak Pak
Do you know of any others I should be aware of?
Nik
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Make Yourself a Dang Quesadilla
Hey Nik,
Have you ever had a really good quesadilla? Like at a restaurant? Now I generally don't go for quesadillas (it's one of the suggestions my husband often makes when I'm out of ideas or didn't meal plan and he almost always gets shot down). But, back when I was interning in DC there was a Tex Mex place, Tortilla Coast, that had a special place in my heart. My roommate and friends frequented it. Tortilla Coast made a dang good spinach and mushroom quesadilla I got hooked on during Lent. One of our friends, an observant Catholic, didn't eat meat during Lent, so he was pretty limited on his selections for those 40 days.
Anyway, all this to say, I've just been converted to the homemade quesadilla. Armed with some knowledge of how to make a good quesadilla, inspired by these zucchini, corn and black bean quesadillas (pinned here) and with a big ol' yellow summer squash in the fridge I made some of the best quesadillas in my life. We fed the missionaries that night, and when 19-21 year old boys start asking about the recipe, you know you have a winner!
Okay, here's how to make a really good, restaurant quality quesadilla (hint: it's the same way restaurants make everything taste better, more fat and more salt):
Turn on your pan to medium heat. I usually turn ours to just above medium heat and use a cast iron skillet. You want it warm enough to brown, but not too hot that it burns the tortilla before your cheese melts. And don't get so impatient (ahem, self) that you turn it way up at first because then your skillet will get too hot and you'll end up grateful your husband likes things extra toasty.
Oil your tortilla on one side. I use olive oil.
Spread the oil with a pastry brush. You should have just enough oil to get a fine layer across the whole tortilla.
Sprinkle the oiled tortilla with salt. I use kosher, and probably about 1/8 of a teaspoon, if that.
Put the tortilla, oiled side down, on to the hot skillet.
Oil the top of the tortilla (this was a little too much oil and I ended up rubbing the next tortilla on this to share the heavy-handed dose) and again, sprinkle with salt.
Flip tortilla when it is golden brown on the bottom.
Add fillings on half of tortilla. I prefer to put my cheese on first so it starts melting and then adding my warm filling on top of the cheese.
Fold tortilla in half over filling, browning both sides of the tortilla.
Ooey, gooey cheese and delicious filling
Serve the finished product with a dollop of sour cream and guacamole, if you happen to have it on hand.
As for the filling, here's my squash, mushroom and black bean version:
Assemble quesadilla as shown above.
Okay, I think I can stop raving about these quesadillas now that I have them written down for posterity.
But seriously, they were so good.
Deid
PS- Did you say "cay-sa-dill-a" in your head every time I wrote quesadilla, or was that just me? Thanks Napoleon Dynomite.
Have you ever had a really good quesadilla? Like at a restaurant? Now I generally don't go for quesadillas (it's one of the suggestions my husband often makes when I'm out of ideas or didn't meal plan and he almost always gets shot down). But, back when I was interning in DC there was a Tex Mex place, Tortilla Coast, that had a special place in my heart. My roommate and friends frequented it. Tortilla Coast made a dang good spinach and mushroom quesadilla I got hooked on during Lent. One of our friends, an observant Catholic, didn't eat meat during Lent, so he was pretty limited on his selections for those 40 days.
Anyway, all this to say, I've just been converted to the homemade quesadilla. Armed with some knowledge of how to make a good quesadilla, inspired by these zucchini, corn and black bean quesadillas (pinned here) and with a big ol' yellow summer squash in the fridge I made some of the best quesadillas in my life. We fed the missionaries that night, and when 19-21 year old boys start asking about the recipe, you know you have a winner!
Okay, here's how to make a really good, restaurant quality quesadilla (hint: it's the same way restaurants make everything taste better, more fat and more salt):
Turn on your pan to medium heat. I usually turn ours to just above medium heat and use a cast iron skillet. You want it warm enough to brown, but not too hot that it burns the tortilla before your cheese melts. And don't get so impatient (ahem, self) that you turn it way up at first because then your skillet will get too hot and you'll end up grateful your husband likes things extra toasty.
Oil your tortilla on one side. I use olive oil.
Spread the oil with a pastry brush. You should have just enough oil to get a fine layer across the whole tortilla.
Sprinkle the oiled tortilla with salt. I use kosher, and probably about 1/8 of a teaspoon, if that.
Put the tortilla, oiled side down, on to the hot skillet.
Oil the top of the tortilla (this was a little too much oil and I ended up rubbing the next tortilla on this to share the heavy-handed dose) and again, sprinkle with salt.
Flip tortilla when it is golden brown on the bottom.
Add fillings on half of tortilla. I prefer to put my cheese on first so it starts melting and then adding my warm filling on top of the cheese.
Fold tortilla in half over filling, browning both sides of the tortilla.
Ooey, gooey cheese and delicious filling
Serve the finished product with a dollop of sour cream and guacamole, if you happen to have it on hand.
As for the filling, here's my squash, mushroom and black bean version:
- 2 cups diced yellow squash or zucchini
- 3/4 cup diced sweet onion
- 4 large white mushrooms, diced
- 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- grated cheese, I used a mix of Colby Jack and pepper jack
- cumin, coriander, chili powder, cayenne pepper, Sriracha hot sauce, salt and pepper
Assemble quesadilla as shown above.
Okay, I think I can stop raving about these quesadillas now that I have them written down for posterity.
But seriously, they were so good.
Deid
PS- Did you say "cay-sa-dill-a" in your head every time I wrote quesadilla, or was that just me? Thanks Napoleon Dynomite.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Hey Deid,
We made it home late Sunday night from our whirlwind car ride. All in all we covered 3,585 miles over 8 days and drove through 9 states. And our boys did amazingly well. I was so worried when we finally decided we were going. I wasn't worried about our 5 year old, but man, that 2 year old hates the car. He hates to be strapped down, gets carsick, is too little to play car games. Basically, everything that could make a road trip horrible he is. But he did amazing!
I read every idea I could find about road tripping with kids and found a lot of ideas in this Car Trips 101 post to be helpful. The comment section is also full of good ideas, so don't skip it. And this Car Kit post is full of great books and activities to keep the kids occupied.
And I'm so proud to say that even though were were armed with 2 iPads and 2 iPhones, not a single movie was played on our trip--and very little iDevice time. Each boy played on an iPad for about an hour. So it is possible in this day and age to actually travel without a DVD player! Though I am glad we have an unlimited data plan because we did stream Pandora the entire time.
Here are a few tricks that seemed to work well for us:
1. With a newly potty trained 2 year old we knew potty breaks would be very frequent, and had heard that diaper wipe containers work as a great potty when it is actually impossible to get to a restroom. Luckily, we never used it for that, but it did come in handy when that 2 year old got carsick.
2. I packed the boys clothes as complete outfits in ziploc bags. This made it especially nice when we pulled into our hotel late--all I had to do was grab 2 little bags and we were good. I only packed 4-5 outfits a piece and, as you know, did laundry at your house.
3. We packed beach towels, for our visit to the beach, but they came in handy when we were caught in a torrential downpour and doubled as blankets when the boys got cold in the car.
4. I packed surprises for the boys to open when they were almost to the breaking point. Instead of wrapping them individually I would pick and choose just the right distraction and hand it back in a reusable bag. This cut down on the garbage in the car and I knew exactly what I was handing back.
5. On our really long days (1 day we drove 16 hours, not including potty stops or road construction) we got up at 3:30 and hit the road by 4:00. This gave us about 4 hours on the road before the boys woke up.
6. We tried to only stop for activities that did not require us to sit. I had read that it is wise to eat in the car (because you're sitting) and only get out when you can move. So we ate a lot of PB&J, but did have time to see a few sights along the way.
Honestly, the boys were so good that we're planning a trip to Lake Tahoe in less than 2 weeks. It is only a 9 hour drive and that seems like cake now.
Do you have any road trip tips? Are there must sees in Tahoe?
Off to plan our next trip!
Nik
We made it home late Sunday night from our whirlwind car ride. All in all we covered 3,585 miles over 8 days and drove through 9 states. And our boys did amazingly well. I was so worried when we finally decided we were going. I wasn't worried about our 5 year old, but man, that 2 year old hates the car. He hates to be strapped down, gets carsick, is too little to play car games. Basically, everything that could make a road trip horrible he is. But he did amazing!
I read every idea I could find about road tripping with kids and found a lot of ideas in this Car Trips 101 post to be helpful. The comment section is also full of good ideas, so don't skip it. And this Car Kit post is full of great books and activities to keep the kids occupied.
And I'm so proud to say that even though were were armed with 2 iPads and 2 iPhones, not a single movie was played on our trip--and very little iDevice time. Each boy played on an iPad for about an hour. So it is possible in this day and age to actually travel without a DVD player! Though I am glad we have an unlimited data plan because we did stream Pandora the entire time.
Here are a few tricks that seemed to work well for us:
1. With a newly potty trained 2 year old we knew potty breaks would be very frequent, and had heard that diaper wipe containers work as a great potty when it is actually impossible to get to a restroom. Luckily, we never used it for that, but it did come in handy when that 2 year old got carsick.
2. I packed the boys clothes as complete outfits in ziploc bags. This made it especially nice when we pulled into our hotel late--all I had to do was grab 2 little bags and we were good. I only packed 4-5 outfits a piece and, as you know, did laundry at your house.
3. We packed beach towels, for our visit to the beach, but they came in handy when we were caught in a torrential downpour and doubled as blankets when the boys got cold in the car.
4. I packed surprises for the boys to open when they were almost to the breaking point. Instead of wrapping them individually I would pick and choose just the right distraction and hand it back in a reusable bag. This cut down on the garbage in the car and I knew exactly what I was handing back.
5. On our really long days (1 day we drove 16 hours, not including potty stops or road construction) we got up at 3:30 and hit the road by 4:00. This gave us about 4 hours on the road before the boys woke up.
6. We tried to only stop for activities that did not require us to sit. I had read that it is wise to eat in the car (because you're sitting) and only get out when you can move. So we ate a lot of PB&J, but did have time to see a few sights along the way.
Honestly, the boys were so good that we're planning a trip to Lake Tahoe in less than 2 weeks. It is only a 9 hour drive and that seems like cake now.
Do you have any road trip tips? Are there must sees in Tahoe?
Off to plan our next trip!
Nik
Monday, July 18, 2011
Menu
Hey Nik,
Not much to say about this week's menu, other than: It's hot here in the mid-west! I'm glad to have the freezer stocked with previously made muffins, waffles and bread. The goal this week is to stay cool and hydrated. Eating might be secondary.
Linked up to Meal Plan Monday.
Enjoy!
Deid
Not much to say about this week's menu, other than: It's hot here in the mid-west! I'm glad to have the freezer stocked with previously made muffins, waffles and bread. The goal this week is to stay cool and hydrated. Eating might be secondary.
Linked up to Meal Plan Monday.
Enjoy!
Deid
Sunday, July 17, 2011
File This Under Clever
Hey Nik,
I don't think you beat me to pinning this with your fancy iPhone, but I know we both were struck with a big light bulb moment when we saw this in Nauvoo.
Enjoy those cool mountain nights for me. I'll be savoring the excessive heat watch (for basically the whole week) we've got going on here in the mid-west.
Deid
I don't think you beat me to pinning this with your fancy iPhone, but I know we both were struck with a big light bulb moment when we saw this in Nauvoo.
Putting all the drips from a beverage dispenser to good use! And when doing it on our scale (much, much smaller), using a pretty little dispenser would complete the scene. Though those gorgeous mounds of flowers are hard to compete with.
Enjoy those cool mountain nights for me. I'll be savoring the excessive heat watch (for basically the whole week) we've got going on here in the mid-west.
Deid
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Steve-O's Chicken Salad
Hey Nik,
We're having to mix it up with the variety of salads we eat around here. Lucky for me, the husband is a big fan of "girlie salads" (his words, not mine).
We had a Steve-O's chicken salad the other day for dinner. Since we're not close enough to get a fix at the restaurant, we have to improvise and make our own.
A bed of crunchy romaine, topped with grilled chicken, sliced olives, thinly slice red onion, cucumbers, carrots, homemade croutons and our version of their dressing. Since the husband is a tomato-hater, I don't buy tomatoes very often. I'm waiting for the 9 plants outside to start producing ripe ones. Otherwise, there would be tomato, too.
The croutons were just little rounds of multi-grain bread from the grocery (pre-sliced, like for bruschetta). I cut them to bite size, tossed them with olive oil, some Lawry's seasoning salt, fresh ground pepper, some garlic and onion powder and some dried herbs. I broke my summer rule about turning on the oven and baked them at 400° until they were good and crunchy.
The piece de resistance of this salad is the dressing. Store bought ranch gets a healthy dose of red wine vinegar and dried dill. Then be generous with it. I figure that the vinegar thins it out and makes it healthier, so I can use more of it.
With the left-over croutons we've also been able to have chicken Caesar salads/wraps. Mmm. The crouton making was totally worth it. Any one want to contribute more salad ideas? I'm hard up for some! (We had a heat advisory warning yesterday with the heat index somewhere between 105°-110°. Humidity is evil.)
Love, Deid
We're having to mix it up with the variety of salads we eat around here. Lucky for me, the husband is a big fan of "girlie salads" (his words, not mine).
We had a Steve-O's chicken salad the other day for dinner. Since we're not close enough to get a fix at the restaurant, we have to improvise and make our own.
A bed of crunchy romaine, topped with grilled chicken, sliced olives, thinly slice red onion, cucumbers, carrots, homemade croutons and our version of their dressing. Since the husband is a tomato-hater, I don't buy tomatoes very often. I'm waiting for the 9 plants outside to start producing ripe ones. Otherwise, there would be tomato, too.
The croutons were just little rounds of multi-grain bread from the grocery (pre-sliced, like for bruschetta). I cut them to bite size, tossed them with olive oil, some Lawry's seasoning salt, fresh ground pepper, some garlic and onion powder and some dried herbs. I broke my summer rule about turning on the oven and baked them at 400° until they were good and crunchy.
The piece de resistance of this salad is the dressing. Store bought ranch gets a healthy dose of red wine vinegar and dried dill. Then be generous with it. I figure that the vinegar thins it out and makes it healthier, so I can use more of it.
With the left-over croutons we've also been able to have chicken Caesar salads/wraps. Mmm. The crouton making was totally worth it. Any one want to contribute more salad ideas? I'm hard up for some! (We had a heat advisory warning yesterday with the heat index somewhere between 105°-110°. Humidity is evil.)
Love, Deid
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Tying Knots
Nik,
Yes, Facebook is my main news source. I had to admit that sometime last month and I was so embarrassed. I used to be so up on current events with my frequent listening of NPR. Now, I rely on my friends. Lucky for me, I have pretty diverse, yet involved friends, so it works. I learned of Osama bin Laden's death on Facebook during a middle of the night feeding. I also learned the winner of The Voice on Facebook, unfortunately before I'd watched the finale. Now I know not to log on until I know the outcome of any reality TV I might get caught up in.
Have you noticed the trend in the resurgence of friendship bracelets? I can't decide if it's awesome or silly, but I've got embroidery floss and I think we'll have to make a few while you're here. Maybe that will help me decide which side of that fence to choose. I think I've still got made bracelet skills from summers behind the old velvety rocker with the threads pinned to my shorts.
Good luck with your final preparations! And enjoy your EVO experience!
Deid
Yes, Facebook is my main news source. I had to admit that sometime last month and I was so embarrassed. I used to be so up on current events with my frequent listening of NPR. Now, I rely on my friends. Lucky for me, I have pretty diverse, yet involved friends, so it works. I learned of Osama bin Laden's death on Facebook during a middle of the night feeding. I also learned the winner of The Voice on Facebook, unfortunately before I'd watched the finale. Now I know not to log on until I know the outcome of any reality TV I might get caught up in.
Have you noticed the trend in the resurgence of friendship bracelets? I can't decide if it's awesome or silly, but I've got embroidery floss and I think we'll have to make a few while you're here. Maybe that will help me decide which side of that fence to choose. I think I've still got made bracelet skills from summers behind the old velvety rocker with the threads pinned to my shorts.
Good luck with your final preparations! And enjoy your EVO experience!
Deid
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Hey Deid,
Is it just me, or is Facebook your main connection to the outside world? The TV isn't on a lot in our house (unless its PBS Kids) and I can't handle watching the news, but surprisingly Facebook keeps me pretty informed with very little effort.
If I ever seem to know what is going on in the news or pop culture, there's a 99.5% chance I read it on Facebook. Not only do I know who's having a baby, getting married, moving, or having a party among my friends, but those same FB friends keep me updated on earthquakes, tornadoes, reality TV, the NBA draft, court rulings, and even weather from around the country.
How do you get your news?
Nik
Is it just me, or is Facebook your main connection to the outside world? The TV isn't on a lot in our house (unless its PBS Kids) and I can't handle watching the news, but surprisingly Facebook keeps me pretty informed with very little effort.
If I ever seem to know what is going on in the news or pop culture, there's a 99.5% chance I read it on Facebook. Not only do I know who's having a baby, getting married, moving, or having a party among my friends, but those same FB friends keep me updated on earthquakes, tornadoes, reality TV, the NBA draft, court rulings, and even weather from around the country.
How do you get your news?
Nik
Friday, July 1, 2011
Happy Anniversary!
Nik,
Hope you two love birds have a great day! It doesn't seem like too long ago that I was the third wheel, hanging out with you two constantly. Thanks for including me in so many dinners, a spring break trip, random drives to Target, movie nights and more. I might have made more friends my freshman year if I hadn't had you two, but where's the fun in that?
I already feel like we've entered high pressure potty training to get Baby Girl to Grandma Camp in 2013-- and we haven't even graduated to size 2 diapers yet! I bet the kids all had so much fun. Think we could sweet talk Mom into doing a guest post on her great Grandma Camps? I'd have to say that having a good theme is what makes them so successful. And that Mom and Dad are crazy fun.
We had a great time picking blueberries earlier this week. Seven pounds in about a half hour. Those days spent in our parents' raspberry patch turned me into a pro berry picker.
Half the berries got made into syrup and blueberry butter yesterday. Yum! Why, in the midst of canning madness do I think, "I hate this!" Yet when the beautiful purple jars are cooling on the counter and the husband has stepped in and helped with dishes I am so satisfied? It happens every time, every year. Though I think it's worse without a partner in canning.
Enjoy your long weekend! Happy 4th!
Deid
Hope you two love birds have a great day! It doesn't seem like too long ago that I was the third wheel, hanging out with you two constantly. Thanks for including me in so many dinners, a spring break trip, random drives to Target, movie nights and more. I might have made more friends my freshman year if I hadn't had you two, but where's the fun in that?
I already feel like we've entered high pressure potty training to get Baby Girl to Grandma Camp in 2013-- and we haven't even graduated to size 2 diapers yet! I bet the kids all had so much fun. Think we could sweet talk Mom into doing a guest post on her great Grandma Camps? I'd have to say that having a good theme is what makes them so successful. And that Mom and Dad are crazy fun.
We had a great time picking blueberries earlier this week. Seven pounds in about a half hour. Those days spent in our parents' raspberry patch turned me into a pro berry picker.
Half the berries got made into syrup and blueberry butter yesterday. Yum! Why, in the midst of canning madness do I think, "I hate this!" Yet when the beautiful purple jars are cooling on the counter and the husband has stepped in and helped with dishes I am so satisfied? It happens every time, every year. Though I think it's worse without a partner in canning.
Enjoy your long weekend! Happy 4th!
Deid
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