70. Every week for a month, make a dish I've never made. (3/4)

3. New England Clam Chowder from Woodman's of Essex in Essex, Massachusetts (out of Coastal Living Magazine)
- I just received my latest Coastal Living Magazine and they had a section devoted to "The Best Seafood Dives" and on the fourth page was a "Secret Dive Recipe" for clam chowder which happens to be a family favorite. Matt begged me to make this as my new recipe for the week and I gladly accepted. I've never made any kind of homemade soup so I was very excited to make this. We hit up our favorite fresh seafood joint: Joe Patti's where I purchased fresh clams. Moving down here has been such a bonus in the department of fresh seafood! Had we lived in Michigan still, this recipe would not have been as exciting as I would have had to use "canned" clams - ewwwww!!!

I must admit this recipe was very easy to make. This was a huge hit! The first words to come out of my husband's mouth was, "DAMN!! This is really good!" I totally agree! This recipe is going down as a King family classic and if I ever have you over for lunch or dinner, there's a big chance this is going to be on the menu! This is a MUST TRY if you love you some clam chowder! By far my favorite new recipe!

INGREDIENTS
2 cups water
1 large potato, peeled and cubed
1/4 cup minced onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cups minced clams, with juices
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS
Cook clams (I boiled 2 cups of water with 1/4 cup of salt for 20 minutes or until the clams completely open up. Any clams that do not open up, throw them out.)

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 10 minutes or until potato is tender.

Add clams, and return mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, and let stand 20 minutes.

Stir in cream and butter. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thoroughly heated. Makes 4 servings.

70. Every week for a month, make a dish I've never made. (2/4)

2. Creamy Macaroni and Cheese by Paula Dean
-I was looking for a recipe that reminded me of being a kid again and something that I knew Avie would love too. I am a HUGE fan of Macaroni and Cheese and knew the perfect person to turn to for a great recipe: Paula Dean. I have never made Macaroni and Cheese from scratch and have heard of a lot of recipes out there that call for quite a few different types of cheeses. I wanted to keep this one simple and stick to one type of cheese.

This recipe turned out great and was very creamy! Avie kept coming back to eat off our plates after she was done eating hers! This was a super easy dish since it simmers in the crock pot to cook. I plan on bringing this to our church potluck next month. It's going to be a hit!

INGREDIENTS
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (an 8-oz box isn't quite 2 cups)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, cut into pieces
2 1/2 cups (about 10 oz) grated sharp Cheddar cheese
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream
1 (10 3/4 - oz) an condensed Cheddar cheese soup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

DIRECTIONS
Boil the macaroni in a 2 quart saucepan in plenty of water until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, mix butter and cheese. Stir until the cheese melts. In a slow cooker, combine cheese/butter mixture and add the eggs, sour cream, soup, salt, milk, mustard and pepper and stir well. Then add drained macaroni and stir again. Set the slow cooker on low setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

86. Avie's Big Girl Room

I thought Avie would be in her crib until her 2nd birthday and then we would convert it to a toddler bed. However, Avie had other plans! One afternoon about 2 months ago, I heard a loud thud come from her room during nap time. I went in and there she was smiling, walking around the room and OUT of her crib! Thank God she didn't break anything from her little acrobat stunt! Now that we officially have a big girl, I wanted to give her a big girl room and get rid of her nursery theme and decor. My mother-in-law ordered Avie some wall appliques from Uppercase Living that were pink and brown so I got my inspiration for the room from that. I still have to make some 'fru-fru' type curtains - just haven't found the fabric that I love and we still have to buy her new bedding and a rug for the center of the room. The big part of painting is done and the pink stripes make it very girly. I love it!

BEFORE - I got so excited in painting her room that I forgot to take a 'before picture'. This photo was of her nursery at our old house in Michigan. It gives you an idea of the ABC/Animal and bright/unisex colors we had. And yes, we did the striping in here too in a pale yellow. We are fans of striped walls!

AFTER -View of her room from hallway.

This picture clearly shows the striping that we painted - it turned out awesome!

I painted these stars in the corners of the room then added clear and pink sparkly jewels in the middle of the star.

19. Read one parent/self-help book a month for a year. (1/12)

#1 - APRIL 2009 - Withhold Not Correction by Bruce A. Ray

A good friend of mine from church told me about this book and how it has helped her get a clear mind in disciplining her son. I thought it would be good to get another perspective especially one that involves the reformed church. There are quite a few nuggets that I will take away from this book and I have tabbed certain chapters to reference as Avie gets older. This book has helped me to look at discipline in a way that should reflect God's discipline and that it should always be corrective and by disciplining children, it shows evidence of love.

"Our concern as parents must be to see our children corrected: to see a change in their attitudes and a change in their actions, to see their lame feet put back onto that course and walking once more in the direction that the Lord would have them pursue. May God forgive us when we seek to turn the authority to correct into a license to abuse; we don't have that right. Any discipline that we administer, any correction that would be biblical, must be administered under God's authority, and it must be administered in a context of love. . . . . Your children will never believe you are in earnest, and really wish them to obey you, so long as your actions contradict your counsel."

70. Every week for a month, make a dish I've never made. (1/4)

1. Beef Stroganoff with Short Ribs and Butter Noodles by Tyler Florence
- I have been wanting to make a new dish for some time and happened to catch some good eats on my old roommates blog http://mikevibe.blogspot.com. He really is a great cook so what better way to start off this 101 than with a dish that he tried.

The dish was a HUGE hit and the short ribs literally melted in our mouths! I should have taken a picture of the plate after we were done eating - we demolished it! Even little Avie's plate was clean which made this mama happy. I will most certainly make this again!

INGREDIENTS:
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped, plus 2 cloves, minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves removed
1 large sprig fresh thyme, leaves removed
3 pounds beef short ribs, cut into 2 ribs apiece
1 1/2 pounds cremini mushrooms
1 1/2 pounds white button mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped shallots
1/4 cup cognac
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 cup sour cream
1 pound egg noodles
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons freshly chopped green onions

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Place the chopped garlic, salt and pepper into a bowl. Add enough extra-virgin olive oil to create a paste. Add the rosemary and thyme leaves to the bowl and stir to combine.

Set short ribs out on a roasting tray and cover with herb paste. Roast in the oven for 2 hours and 30 minutes until they are falling apart.

Heat a large pan over high heat and add a 3-count of olive oil. Add mushrooms and cook for 3 minutes until brown. Add shallots and minced garlic and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for a further 2 minutes until garlic and onion become fragrant. Remove pan from heat and carefully add cognac to deglaze the pan. Return to heat and add cream. Reduce heat and simmer until reduced by half. Turn off heat and stir in Dijon mustard and sour cream. Season with salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.

Cook egg noodles in salted boiling water according to directions on package. Drain and toss with butter while still hot.

To serve: Pile the noodles night on a plate, top with stroganoff sauce and finish with rib slices. Garnish with fresh parsley and green onions.