green bean fries

we always have frozen green beans in our freezer.

i love them, and maybe i over use them, but i'm ok with that.

i throw them in stir fry, make spicy green beans often,
sometimes i leave out the spicy and just make garlic green beans, and so on.

i came across this recipe today, here.

i made these green bean fries right away.

i didn't have the oil that she mentioned,
but my extra virgin olive oil was fine, and did not burn.
however, i do believe i will use sunflower or coconut oil next time.
i also added black pepper.

they get a little crispy on the ends.
i can't explain how good they are.
and it's crazy, but they do taste like fries.
try them.
delicious.

recipe:
one bag of frozen french green beans. do not thaw.
toss with a little bit of oil, black pepper, garlic salt.
line a large glass baking dish with parchment paper.
add beans and spread out as much as possible.
bake on middle shelf at 450 degrees for 30 minutes, toss, bake another 20 minutes.
serve right away, with ketchup.

and the best part,
boyd doesn't like green food,
but i caught him sneaking some of these when i wasn't in the kitchen.

love,
nicolle

sunrise and foodie things and the weekend

hello.

between last night and this morning, 3 people that i dearly love texted me their sunset or sunrise pictures.

kevin, my aunt in arizona, and my sister on some highway in texas.

we've started a movement. not really. but it's fun and i'm glad we're pausing more to look,

because each time it's a beautiful miracle that god gave us.
i'm always thankful for the sunrise and a new morning, to start fresh from the mistakes of yesterday,
and the sunsets either close out a beautiful day or an exhausting day,
they are always different, always a gift.

this is my sunrise view from this morning.

 i ran to the store this morning, and picked up healthy things like...

bananas

apples

pomegranate yogurt

dark chocolate

red wine

broccoli

vine ripened tomatoes...

 and then on the way home i had a BIG craving for something not so healthy,

so i stopped and enjoyed this.
a glass of water and a $2 basket of chips and salsa equals heaven to me.
fort worth has the best places to eat, the best culture, the best of everything. i love it.

and then i stopped for a chocolate concha at my favorite mexican bakery,
and it was beautiful. i've fallen in love with all things pan dulce.
i've learned to treat myself, but to balance it out with exercise, and lots of healthy food.

one treat doesn't have to turn into a full day or a full week of treats.

 it's taken me way too many years to learn this, but i'm glad that i'm finally at that point.

it's a good feeling, because i will always be a foodie.

this past weekend boyd was invited to his cousin's birthday party,
and a classmate's birthday party.
his sweet cousin cale jean turned 6, and had her party at an indoor bounce house.
right after this party boyd wanted his next birthday at a bounce house.

sunday was his classmate's party.
a camo party, with marshmallow guns.
we all dressed up for it.
and right after this party boyd wanted his next birthday at his house, with marshmallow guns.
i guess we've got big decisions to make.

we spent a couple of hours at kevin's mom's last night,
drinking coffee and visiting and boyd playing the wii.
it's been so cold this week, we've been indoors after school.
we're hoping for some time outside this afternoon.

the other night boyd said to me,

you're the best mom i've ever had.
{thank goodness that children are so forgiving}.

i love him so.

how has your week been?

love,

nicolle

kindergarten day three

my heart has melted a thousand times this week, already. 

boyd is so very tired, but he's getting used to school. he had to eat part of his breakfast on the walk to school this morning. and he fussed at me over the shirt that i picked out for him to wear, so we compromised and i told him he could pick out his outfits the rest of the week.
we are just trying to get into the swing of things, figure out our routine, and so on.

 this morning in the cafeteria he greeted many of his classmates by name. it amazes me that he already knows their names, and what i love is that his outgoing personality is really going to thrive here.

and i sat with him for a minute, then tried to leave so he could have a little bit of freedom before the bell rang, but each time i would walk away i would go right back to him. he found a friend, they compared lunches, they looked like they might be up to some mischief, i stood in the corner for a few more minutes, then i walked home. there are plenty of teachers and aides to watch them, but i worried that he'd leave something in the cafeteria or get in the wrong line to get to class, but i know he will be fine at the same time.
he wound up with about 10 minutes in the cafeteria without me, and when i got home i wanted to call to make sure he made it to class, but not wanting to look too crazy, i refrained.

i picked up my favorite trader joe's salad today.

it's like an asian spring roll in a bowl. 

it's delicious and it makes me happy.

and then boyd got a bad mark for talking, which doesn't surprise me, but still bugs me.
i asked him what happened and he said, i just love to talk.
i already knew that.

i asked boyd what he learned today, and he told me, rule no. 5.
and so i asked him what that is, and he told me he forgot.

and that's a wrap for day three.
this might become a kindergarten blog, bear with me.

love,
nicolle

this week

we've been...
swimming with friends in our neighborhood pool.
swimming at memaw's house. we had a really nice day over there.

drinking iced coffee. or mocha as boyd says. he always tells me i'm drinking a mocha,
and i just go with it.
school clothes shopping. i'm not a shopper. we spent about 5 minutes picking out shirts and shorts. and i was happy with everything that we got. his closet is full of big boy clothes. sigh. and when he's 18 i will look back and laugh at this, and then i'll really think he's wearing big boy clothes.
school supplies are purchased, and boyd is the proud owner of an angry birds backpack, which he won't stop wearing around the house. 

playing with a good friend from pre-school, and eating super hero bomb pops.
boyd is a hugger, and i love that.
however, he loves to bear hug his friends, and lift them off of the ground. he did that today, and sweet ethan got a little upset, which left boyd boohooing off and on for an hour about how he'd hurt his friend. i told him it was ok and ethan was not mad at him, but not everyone wants to be hugged like that by him. maybe only his daddy.

eating brown bag popcorn, with sriracha.
{in my mind i always thank my friend sealaura for this combo, each time i eat it}.
it's my go to dinner, in this heat.
along with a sparkling water that i'm now hooked on.

 my sweet babe fussed at me all day long today. i don't like to vent about parenting too much because no one ever said it was easy. and what i have to say about it has already been said a million times.
and maybe i vent too much, i don't know, i'm frazzled tonight.
some days it's so complex and confusing and exhausting and emotional.
bedtime was a big blessing tonight. that is the truth.
 

kevin is at the office late tonight, it's now 9 pm, and i might have just texted him and said, i need tacos.
another truth.

boyd and i were out somewhere the other day, and some men behind us were talking about the king of beers {i'm assuming their conversation was about budweiser}. boyd asked me, who is the king of beers mom? and before i could answer he said rather loudly,
i know, Jesus is the king of beers. 
i teach boyd that we should be thankful to Jesus for everything in our lives, and that he has made everything good. beer is good. maybe i have misled boyd in my teachings, but i guess his reasoning skills are right on target.

i'm going to bed.
i'm exhausted.
waiting on the tacos first though.

love,
nicolle

tuesday

hi everyone. i'm not even sure what all we've been up to. we've had a few days of rain and cool weather, which is unheard of in texas in july, so we've been enjoying that. we've been to dinner and had delicious burgers with friends, we got massages, had dinner with kevin's mom, and i'm sure i cooked, cleaned and grocery shopped somewhere in between all of that. boyd played with his friend hailey this morning, at the trampoline park, and then we had tacos with them. it was a good morning. and then i got the parenting blues because boyd was just being a stinky 5 year old, and i ran out of steam and patience trying to figure him out. we came home, i sulked for a while and we made a trip to trader joe's, which helped a little, but didn't solve all of the world's problems. it did help a little, to buy pretty flowers, plantain chips, wasabi almonds, and dinner.

i decorated the dining table, which i never do. 

it made me happy. i should do it more often.

dinner.

and even though he wears me out, he makes me laugh, most always. 

boyd has been waking in the mornings, and going straight into the bathroom, shutting the door, standing on his footstool, and making faces at himself in the mirror, and talking to himself. it is hilarious. i wish you could see it. i stood there for a good 10 minutes this morning, peeking in on him, before i opened the door all the way and told him good morning. i was laughing so hard.
these are the things i want to etch in my memory, forever. 

good and bad, exciting and happy and exhausting, these are the days to remember, for sure. 

have a good night.

love,

nicolle

alone time, foodie style

my mom came to town this morning, to spend the day with boyd.

i debated on staying home and just enjoying the silence,

but i wanted to eat at a new restaurant.

it's in one of my favorite parts of fort worth.

i'm glad i went.

the food was good, the silence truly was golden, and i did what i love doing...

trying new food, stopping for my favorite coffee, taking pictures, being alone.

i went to the magnolia cheese company.

they are known for their fancy cheese platters, and i think that would be a fun lunch with girlfriends,

along with some wine,

but i went with a funky salad. 

they call this one the runaway caprese.

it was different, and it was really good.

 i think food is so beautiful.

and i think life is too short to not try something new. 

and i'm thankful for every bite that god gives me.

i dream of being a food photographer one day, or a food critic, or maybe just eating my way through fort worth. something along those lines. as long as it involves pretty and delicious food.

i devoured it. 

then i had coffee at my favorite place, avoca, which is just down the street.

i left the coffee shop, and walked around like a tourist for a few minutes.

i made a quick run into trader joe's.

and now my happy bowl is full of the ingredients for my favorite lunch lately.

one diced avocado + a few diced grape tomatoes + fresh lemon juice + black pepper.

i got home, my mom and boyd showed up about an hour later, and somehow i lucked out and she took boyd with her for the weekend. and i'm not going to lie, i almost cried happy tears. boyd was thrilled to go.
and she told me not to call to check on him, or she would be mad at me. so i will try.
i know i will be so glad to see him on sunday, but i know that kevin and i will be grateful for the rest.
i'm so thankful.

have a good weekend.

love,

nicolle

cupcake friday

thankful for...

a neighbor who rescued me and took boyd for an hour yesterday

coffee with a friend

a trip to trader joe's

cheap wine

dark chocolate peanut butter cupcakes

a cloudy day

a cold that was short lived

brisket, ribs and sausage bought and ready for the smoker

rest

happy memorial day weekend everyone.

love,

nicolle

cupcake friday {more yarn bombing}

this morning we had an impromptu breakfast date with our friend kathy,

which was a lot of fun.

i wanted to look at the yarn bombing again, and take a few more pictures.

we ran to a couple of grocery stores, and got a car wash.

boyd is going on day 2 with his spiderman tshirt.

we might have had cupcakes twice today.

{pictured dark chocolate peanut butter cupcakes, trader joes, heavenly}.

i love his little face.

 i'm sad to be going to a funeral tomorrow,

but glad to see old classmates,

and i had to laugh because i figured it was time to buy new makeup.

i think my mascara is 5 years old, and that's embarassing.

or maybe it's just embarassing to admit that.

sunday i get a massage, and i'm going to enjoy that to the fullest.

happy weekend.

love,

nicolle

good things

more signs of spring.

our texas mountain laurels are blooming.

trader joe's stickers,

and this sweet boy who let me drag him to 4 grocery stores today, the post office and the gas station.

boyd turns 5 in a few weeks.
{i won't even go into the whole how is this possible, and the fact that i tear up when i think about it}.

we talked about a cake today and he decided on an easter egg themed cake,

with strawberry cake and chocolate frosting and sprinkles and a number 5 candle,

made by him and his mama.

so that's what we went with.

i don't even know what we're doing for a party yet, but simple comes to mind.

{i'm second guessing myself on not going all out on decor and invites and a fancy venue, and will i disappoint him, and all that stuff, but i'm going with my gut. i doubt he will be scarred because i don't have an invite to glue into his baby book. and i am sure this will be the last year i can get away with simple}.

 a few more good things...

kevin will be home tomorrow.

we have a fun birthday party to go to for boyd's friend parker tomorrow.

i bought my favorite trader joe's coffee and i'm about to brew a cup.

boyd is tired and going to bed early.

i plan on taking a long soak in the tub.

groceries are bought for the week,

and the menu is light and easy.

good night.

love,

nicolle

ps. my friend nichole listed the cutest hair ties in her etsy shop.
i have some, and i love them.
go buy some, here.