Late spring/early summer photo dump

We've been busy, finishing up the school year and kicking off summer. It has all been fun, but I definitely feel like things have been a bit go-go-go. Thankfully today is a day off work and I can catch up on a few things. Now that Molly won't let me post anything on social media, I only have the blog to document the onset of the teen years! So here's a glimpse at our girl in her last few months as an 11-year-old:

Easter weekend in Minnesota - good times with the O'Grady/Kirkendall crew

Post-Seder photo - poor Jon had covid and had to video in

Spring visit with Joe, Marsha, and Steve

New bike

Dad + daughter trip to Universal

Story time with a growing nephew

Feeling tough after her first big lacrosse tournament with a new team - she scored one of the few team goals on day 1!

Father's day photo

Sick for Spring break

No, it wasn't covid! But poor Molly had a terrible cold during our Spring break trip to Fort Lauderdale, and I ended up getting it right when we came back. At first, Jason and I thought Molly was just being a cranky tween on the trip (which may have partially been the case), but she really didn't feel well. So, we had a very low key vacation. Still fun - our dinners were all fantastic and we had a nice time at the beach - but we also slept in late and spent more time than we planned in the hotel watching movies and HGTV.

I also realized during the trip that I need to meet Molly where she is, and not just force her into doing what I want to do. She doesn't enjoy hours of reading by the beach. But she sure loved getting her nails done and browsing around the surf shops by the pier. Here are a few of the highlights:

Water taxi ride - 8 minutes of fun after an hour and a half wait :)

Back at the Yankee Clipper (now the B Ocean Resort), 15 years after our wedding! 

Outdoor dining at Louie Bossi's

Teenager in training - we realized at the airport that just about every girl between the ages of 12 and 18 was wearing some variation of the same outfit :)

Winter weekends in Wisconsin

Our lake house is a true home away from home. Maybe even better than home because we can go up for a weekend and do absolutely nothing. Which is exactly what we did last weekend for Jason's birthday. Molly had a book to finish for school (in between episodes of Malibu Rescue on Netflix). I watched as much Olympics coverage as humanly possible. Jason got in a good nap and flipped through his bday gift: The Flavor Bible. And Riley ran around in the snow and inspected all of the new animal tracks since our last visit. 

Even as cold as it is, I think we'll be up almost every weekend this month! We have plans next weekend to go up and ski with friends (coming back in time for the Superbowl on Sunday of course ... go Bengals!!) and then will have a different set of friends up the following weekend, just to see the place and hang out for a night. Everyone likes a getaway.

Here are a few pics of the inside now that we're all settled in:

First thing we see when we walk in the front door

Favorite room

View into the kitchen

Guest room, Molly's (and Riley's) room, Master views 1 and 2

Bathroom - small but mighty

Nothing beats summer at the lake, but I'm happy we're getting our use out of the place year-round!

Finding the joy in cooking

Jason is definitely the head chef in our family. He knows what he's doing and can just kind of "figure things out" when it's time for dinner. I am a recipe girl. I know how to cook, but I like to have a plan. Specific ingredients to buy. Tips to help me along the way. 

So I'm kind of killing 2 new year's resolutions in 1 with my new cookbook - What's Gaby Cooking? recommended by one of Susie's friends. It's giving me the inspiration I need to cook more and help Jason out ... and it's helping us eat a little healthier with California-style recipes. Nothing in this cookbook has been too difficult to make - the trick seems to be brightening everything up with a yummy sauce at the end.

Here are a few pics of what I've made so far:

Forbidden Rice and Roasted Mushroom Bowl.
In a perfect world, it would have had avocado slices on top, but I didn't hit the timing right on our avocados. Still, this was absolutely delicious, with some kind of lovely herb-y garnish on top and a big hit of lemon with the mushrooms.

Winter Cobb Salad with Pomegranates.
Jason was out of town last week and I probably made this salad 3 of 4 days for lunch until my pomegranate seeds ran out. So good!

Chocolate, Cashew, and Date Smoothie.
What's easier than throwing a bunch of ingredients in a blender?

Tonight's masterpiece - Chicken Enchiladas with Cumin Crema

Not pictured - Chicken Parmesan Pappardelle that Molly claimed was "too cheesy" :)

My other favorite cookbook? The O'Grady Quarantine Cookbook, put together by Jon and Adina to document all the recipes we made over video chat in 2020/2021. Every other Sunday(ish), we would pick a recipe, set up the iPad in the kitchen, and then cook and chat together over video. Molly would usually join for dinner, and then we would typically end up talking after dinner until my iPad battery ran out. I absolutely LOVE having this record of how we made Michelin star memories in the middle of a pandemic.

Last Sunday, we started from the beginning and made Arugula Pesto Pasta together. A lovely evening, as always. Looking forward to cooking with Jon and Adina in person ... hopefully this Spring or Summer!

New knits

Hot off the needles! I just finished my second sweater of the season, the Aran Gallant Sweater by Caidree, knit with Drops Air yarn in pink marble:

Nothing makes me happier than wearing homemade knits on a cold day. And since I haven't posted in a while, I'll also show off my first completed project of the season - the Flax Sweater by Tin Can Knits, made with Knit Picks Swish Worsted in rainforest heather. This is a really popular (and free) beginner-friendly sweater - almost a rite of passage in the knitting community:

Next up is a sweater for Jason - The Hot Toddy by my favorite designer, Knitatude. And then the Good Grandpa Cardigan by Caidree for Molly. I probably won't finish Molly's before the cold weather is over, but hopefully she'll still like the style next year :)