Vegan Waffles

Aly turned me onto the WaffleParty website at waffleparty.com. Last night we had our first Waffle Party - YUM! We made plain waffles, peanut butter waffles, and cheesecake waffles - all vegan. The standout for the evening.....The Cheesecake Waffles!!! The website calls them Sinful Cheesecakey Vegan Waffles and they are Delish!

The recipe: Sinful Cheesecakey Vegan Waffles

1 cup + 2 Tbs all purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1 8 oz. container vegan cream cheese
1/2 cup + 2 Tbs soy/rice milk
3 Tbs 2 Tbs lemon juice
1/2 raw sugar
2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. In a mixing bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

2. In a microwave safe bowl, softened the vegan cream cheese for 30 to 40 seconds. Whisk in the soy or rice milk, oil, lemon, juice, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.

3. Pour wet mixture into dry mixture and mix everything just until blended. Batter will be thicker than usual.

4. Cook on a generously oiled waffle iron. Will take a bit longer to cook than usual. Serves 2-3

We topped ours with blackberries Aly and I canned after a blackberry picking trip we took this summer! Crazy good!

Dino Mite

Preschool is all about Dinosaurs this month! Below are some pics from our house:

Did you know that the largest Dinosaur foot print on record is 3 feet long? Here Giulia and Owen tape up a Dino foot with all of our feet traced onto it.

What do Dinosaurs eat? Here the kiddos are playing chefs and cooking up some yummy meals for our visiting dinosaurs.

Get ready to stomp your feet to the Dino beat!

The kiddos are dancin' to the dino rhythm

Giulia with her best dinosaur roar!

Hailey with her best dinosaur roar!

January Birthday Bliss

During the month of January we celebrate Hailey's, Grandma Lia's, Grandpa Russ', and Grandpa Bruce's Birthdays. So much birthday fun! Here are some pics of celebrations we were able to attend:

Hailey's "Tea Party" Birthday Party

Aly reading the kiddos I'm a Little Tea Pot

Tea Pot inspired cake!

Owen enjoying a muffin

Hailey with her "Rosie" tea cup!

Lots of yummy treats

The kiddos playing a "spin" game to help Hailey choose which present to open

Owen took this picture of Ava

Time to blow out the candles!



Grandma Lia's SURPRISE Birthday Party

Does she looked surprised?

Owen's got the camera again....

Time to open presents!!

Grandpa Tim's Big White Truck

We had lunch the other day with Grandpa Tim and rode in his big white truck! It was a good thing too because the wind was blowing so hard it might have blown us away!!

As always, Owen had some fun playing with Grandpa Tim's camera. During this visit he learned how to set the timer.

"Take us to your leader"

Lasik

Aaron has been nearly blind for the last 17 years. He hates wearing contact lenses and glasses, both give him headaches, so he decided to have eye surgery. Eek! The procedure lasted about 10 minutes and now, miraculously, he can see!! Better than 20/20 even! It is truly amazing.

I spent the ten minutes on the other side of this window filming the surgery and trying not to pass out. Just thinking about it gives me the willies! We will be posting the video footage soon, soooooo you have something to look forward to.... ;-]

Here he is getting prepped:

After the surgery, Aaron asked for an In and Out Burger and a nap! Unfortunately, he did experience some pain throughout the day and into the evening, but he is doing a little better now. We are all in awe of his new eye sight! Such an exciting event!

Perks to near blindness:
1. The room is always dark so one can sleep really well
2. The room is always dark therefore appears cleaner than actually is
3. The wife is always fuzzy therefore thinner and more attractive

Morning Shave

Vegan Challenge

After watching the movie, Food Inc., and reading the book, The Kind Diet, I decided to take a 30 day Vegan eating challenge.

Today is Day 15 and I feel fantastic! I don't miss animal products at all. I've managed to stay on track even when eating away from home.

Breakfast, lunch, snacks, and desserts are a snap. Cooking yummy and satisfying dinners has been more problematic. I've had some success and some failure :( It's a little complicated cooking for Aaron - he doesn't like beans of any kind, mushrooms, or sweet potatoes.

Owen doesn't mind the change whatsoever, Aaron on the other hand is eating out a lot!! Aaron has been very supportive and encouraging of me though. :)

What happens when the 30 days are up? I'm not sure. I need some better dinner recipes quick before Aaron mutinies!

Rookie T Ball Clinic

Owen attended his first Rookie T Ball Clinic this weekend! It was the first of 3 clinics preparing him for the T Ball season starting this spring. He had a great time! The big gym was divided into 4 sections to work on different skills: running the bases, throwing, hitting, etc. We went shopping the night before for his first baseball glove! Aaron and I were giddy with excitement!

Owen with his first baseball glove!

Practicing his stance

Practicing hitting

Waiting his turn to run the bases

Running the bases

Bruce's Bread

Aaron writes:

I asked Owen, "Who made this bread?"

He replies, "Grandpa Bruce."

I ask, "Why?"

He replies, "Because he loves us".........(thinks for a bit)......."Mostly me though."

Food Safety

Last night we had artichokes with our dinner.

Owen: "Mama, What's that?"

Mama: "It's an artichoke."

Owen: "Will it choke us?"

Deja Vu

I know it sounds cliche but I just can't believe how fast this year went!! It seems like we just celebrated New Year's and here we are doing it again.

A year ago today I sat here and created ONZMAMA. I've really enjoyed sending our little stories and photographs out into cyber space with the hope that our friends and family are enjoying them too!

I'm looking forward to all that 2010 has to offer and am convinced it will fly by as fast as 2009 did! Before I know it, I'll be back in this chair posting another New Year's blog!

New Year's Eve Fondue Party with the V-4

Dinner is served.....We served a three cheese fondue and a tomato basil fondue with a variety of dippers.....Yum!

The kiddos favorite however was dessert.....A chocolate marshmallow fondue.....Excuse me while I wipe the drool off my keyboard!

Owen is now obsessed with fondue-ing!

The kiddos with their party hats and horn blowers...

Happy Healthy New Year Everyone!!