I'm Back!!

I'm back!!!!!

Ok well it has been almost 2 years since I last posted on this blog. Wow.....

I am going to get this blog back up and running because I will be closing my Facebook account. So, this blog will be a way to keep family and friends up to date with what it going on in the Newhart home.

I will be doing a big update post just to catch everyone up on what has happened in our lives the past 2 years. Not quit sure when that will go up but I will do my best to get that up as soon as possible.

Just a brief synopsis.

James and I have now been married 4.5 years.

Preston is now 5, Landon 3 and Madison is 2.

James is finally home from deployments....he has been home since June 14th of this year.

We are also in the process of building a house. There is a separate blog for that and you can read about it here.

 Above was taken the day James got home from Afghanistan....and below is our most recent family picture.

Puree Recipes

Ok.... Nothing super exciting.....but here are the 'recipes' for the purees I made this weekend.

Basic Veggies:
I used the same method for Cauliflower, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes, Butternut Squash, Acorn Squash and Broccoli. Some people mix veggies together. I like to keep all mine separate till I get my kid use to each flavor.

Peel and dice into 1 inch cubes.
Steam till fork tender
add to blender with water from bottom of steamer. apx. 3 parts veg 1 part water....this really depends on what stage your baby is at. Add more water for thinner puree
I add 1/2 tbs of butter per every 4 cups of veggies

After it is pureed allow to cool . I use a 9x13 pan.

Then portion out and place in freezer uncovered till frozen solid. After frozen, put in plastic bags.
I freeze mine in regular or mini muffin tins. I did buy special food storage containers from BRU....waste of money. Muffin tins or ice trays and plastic storage bags work better.
To remove from tins after frozen....just let them sit on the counter for a minute or two and then pop out with a butter knife.

Apples and Pears with Cinnamon and

3 medium golden delicious apples ( or any non tart apple)
3 medium pears
1/2 cup All natural unsweetened apple juice
1 tbs unsalted butter
large pinch of cinnamon

Peel, core and chop fruit. Sautee in medium/large sauce pan with juice, cinnamon and butter for 5-7 minutes, or until soft.

Blend till smooth. NOTE: you do NOT need to add any extra water.

cool and freeze just like veggies


Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Chicken

3 large boneless, skinless chicken breast
4 medium sweet potatoes
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup water

Peel and chop potatoes into 1 inch cubes. Cut each chicken breast in half.
Line 9x13 baking pan with aluminum foil. Spread chopped potatoes in even layer on bottom of pan. Place Chicken breast halves on top of potatoes. Pour water into pan. Sprinkle evenly with Cinnamon. Cover with another layer of aluminum foil....leave one corner slightly open to allow steam out.

Bake at 400 for 20-30 minutes....until meat thermometer reads 160. ****DO NOT UNDER COOK******

Dice chicken, add chicken and potatoes to blender and blend till smooth. You will need to add a lot of liquid to this one. I used water today...but I would suggest using Organic Chicken broth. I will be using that next time. Also, do not try to blend too much at one time. Maybe I just have a horribly cheap blender but mine was really getting hot while I was doing this one.

Ok those are the recipes for what I did over the weekend. I'm going to try to add up the cost of everything and compare it to what I would have paid if I had bought pre-made organic baby food. I will try to have that done by tomorrow night.


Butternut Squash streaming


Chicken and Sweet Potatoes


Acorn Squash and Broccoli ready to freeze

Carrot puree in those stupid containers

Frozen Cauliflower

Mommy is Sneaky!!!!

So, I have noticed recently that Preston and Landon are becoming picky eaters. Preston hates veggies and Landon hates meats. Several years ago I heard of a mother who put veggie puree in normal food that she fed her kids. I have decided to try it too. So, this morning I loaded up the kids and we tackled Whole Foods. I love that store. Landon and Madison sat quietly in the 'race car' buggy and Preston helped me pick out fruits and veggie....fun!!!! After lunch and younger two went down for naps, Preston chilled on the couch to watch cartoons and I got to work in the kitchen. I decided that since I was already making purees for the boys I might as well make Madison some baby food. (Madison has just started eating solids this month) Today I made carrot, cauliflower, butternut squash, acorn squash, broccoli, sweet potato and apples with pears and cinnamon. Tomorrow I will be doing more sweet potato and carrots, then pumpkin, red potato, Chicken with apples, beef with green peas, and turkey with carrots. I also got melon, peaches, mango, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries to do fresh purees. (all the veggie purees will be frozen)

I will post the recipes tomorrow.

Making Phone Calls.

When Preston was little James and I made the mistake of letting him play with our cell phone. So, we determined that Landon would not be allowed to touch them....easier said than done. Landon is ridiculously stubborn. He doesn't get hi hand on my phone very often but when he does he made the most of his few seconds of naughtiness.

For Example: This past July I was able to take the kids and go stay in DC for 3 weeks. During that time Landon came down with a cold. I got him up one morning and the snot was unbelievable. So, I grabbed him to wipe his nose. You would have thought I was killing the kid. He started screaming and thrashing all around. Somehow, during the struggle he managed to get my phone out of my pocket and called Aunt Janis (James' aunt) I did not realize that he had done this until a few minutes later when she called me almost in a panic. Scared her to death.

He is also fond of sending blank text messages to Aunt Carissa (my life long best friend)

Normally he gets in trouble for touching my phone. However, this morning he made a phone call and I didn't have the heart to punish him for it.

I had plugged my phone in to charge and walked out of the room to go do something. I returned a few minutes later to find that Landon had managed to put the phone on speaker and called his daddy. By the time I got in there he was in the middle of a conversation. His little face was beaming. I think it totally made James day as well. So, I let it go this time.

It feels like Fall!!!!!!

Fall is by far my favorite time of year. Maybe I love it so much because I was born in the fall....I just realized my birthday is 3 weeks away. Yay me!!!!!

The past few years I haven't done much for fall. I was too exhausted from being preggers to get much into the fall spirit. Even this year I haven't been feeling it. However, I was walking out the front door to leave for the grocery store when the people who live across the way opened their front door. The most amazing smell of cinnamon and pumpkin filled the breeze way. I wanted to just go sit in their living room and enjoy the smell....Landon must have been thinking the same thing because he started walking through their open door. Anyways I knew I had to get some Fall decorations and scents going at my house. So, while we were at Bilo we got a huge pumpkin and a spiced cider candle. When I got home I immediately lit the candle. Then I set up my Fall/Winter Hot Drink Station. I stored the toaster oven under the counter and replaced it with my coffee maker, hot pot (for boiling water) and a basket filled with hot coco mix, apple cider mix, hot tea, honey and marshmallows.





Here is a list of my favorite things about Fall.

~ Hot Apple Cider
~ The smell of leaves
~ Sweatshirts
~Fresh picked Apples
~Thanksgiving
~My birthday ; P
~The sound of crunching leaves
~ Rainbow colored fires my dad makes in the fire pit at his house.
~ being able to play outside in the sunshine and not get all sweaty.
~ Curling up on the couch with a blanket and hot cider.
~ Grilled cheese and tomato soup
~ Scarfs
~ Candy Corn

Sky Top Apple Orchard!!!!!

Landon's favorite activity was rolling around in the dirt.


Preston loves tractors!!!!!



Fresh Apple Spice donuts!!!!!!


Me and my baby girl!!!!!!!!!!!





Preston really liked the hayride.
Soooooo tired after our super fun day.....

Day at the play gound with Daddy.

While Daddy was home we packed as many fun activities as we could. I already posted pictures of our Zoo trip. So, here are pictures of our trip to the playground.