So am I posting regularly now? I don’t know… Not regularly enough to use a real camera to photograph dinner tonight, apparently. All we have is this Instagram shot. But this is a tasty dish, no matter how blurry or dark it may look. Several people on Facebook asked for the recipe after seeing said Instagram shot, so I figured I’d post it here for the good of all.

It came from Williams-Sonoma’s One Pot cookbook, which has some real gems if you’re looking for meals that are quick but unique. When my mother-in-law first sent it to me (she got it out of the clearance bin at Deseret Book), this was one of the first recipes that caught my eye. But Husband said he didn’t like squash, & besides, winter squash was out of season. So when the southern-hemisphere stuff started showing up in my grocery store, I ignored my husband & made it anyway. Everyone — including him — loved it (ha! So there!), though I will say that (Almost) One-Year-Old preferred gnawing the raw squash to the cooked, seasoned stuff. It takes less than 30 minutes start to finish & only dirties a pasta pot, a cutting board, & a baking sheet, plus some assorted utensils.

• 2 lbs. butternut or other winter squash, peeled, seeded, & cut into small (1/2-inch) cubes
• 1 large yellow onion, halved & thinly sliced on a mandoline
• 4 strips thick-cut bacon (though I used regular and it was just fine)
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh sage (I used scant 1/2 Tbsp. rubbed sage)
• salt & pepper
• 1 lb. pasta: rigatoni, farfalle, or other chunky shape
• 1/2 cup parmesan, freshly grated (or… not), plus more for serving

1. Preheat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil.
2. Toss squash, onion, & bacon with the oil. Sprinkle with sage & season with salt & pepper. Spread in a single layer.
3. Roast until squash is caramelized & tender & bacon is getting crispy, 15-20 minutes. Remove & set aside.
4. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta & cook according to package directions, making sure to reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water prior to draining. Return pasta to the pot.
5. Use a wooden spoon to free any of the squash mixture that may be sticking to the foil, then lift the foil off of the baking sheet & use it to funnel the squash into the pot with the pasta.
6. Toss for 1 minute over high heat, adding as much of the pasta water as needed to loosen the sauce.
7. Add parmesan, toss, & serve.

This weekend is General Conference, when the prophet, apostles, and other leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints speak to the entire Church and tell us what the Lord would have us hear about how to keep Christ in our lives and be better people. I’m sure many of you have tricks and traditions to keep your kids occupied and focused so that everyone can hear the messages. We play Conference Bingo, let my preschooler color pictures and do activities in special Conference packets, and have picnic lunches in the living room (the only time food is EVER allowed there).

But the big challenge we were facing was how to remember, retain, and apply what was said during that special weekend! Here is what my husband and I came up with two Conferences ago:

We made 2 posters, with photos of each member of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve, and every week for Family Home Evening, we taught a 3-year-old-friendly condensed version of one of their talks. We distilled the talks down into either a direct quote or a summary (often the talks touched on so many topics, we had to just choose the one we felt applied best to our family) and wrote that next to the speaker’s name. Then I did my best to draw a symbol or picture to help my pre-reader remember. I am no artist, but I like to think that my drawings mostly resemble what they’re supposed to represent…

The posters hung in our hallway, where we (and any visitors to our house) could pass by them often and recall some of the lessons. I can’t tell you what a difference this made in our family! My older daughter now knows all of their names by heart, and could tell us what they taught. It was a huge help for my husband and me too; I still remember the topics of that Conference better than any before or since (we moved the day before last Conference, so that whole weekend was a blur).

As an added bonus, our FHE lessons were pre-planned for 15 weeks!

To do this in your family, just buy 2 standard-size white posterboards. Divide each into 8 parts. Print approx. 3″x2″ (wallet-size) photos of each member of the First Presidency sand Quorum of the Twelve. Hang the posters in your house. Ahead of every FHE, consult your Conference Ensign or lds.org for your lesson topic. We always reviewed the previous lessons each week as well.

What Conference traditions and tricks do you use to be able to listen and remember what is said?

School’s started for most everyone by now, & I know lots of moms are looking for tasty but healthy options for their kids’ lunchboxes. These muffins fit the bill: they contain five different fruits (as long as you consider pumpkins fruits), as well as almonds & whole-wheat flour. They pack a quick & hearty nutritional punch so your kids can get back onto the playground. They’re so hearty that The Munchkin can only finish half of one, so you may want to consider packing just a half muffin, or else making them in a mini-muffin tin & adjusting the baking time.

They’re also great for new moms because of their heartiness & ease of one-handed consumption. They were brought to me after The Mini-Munchkin made her appearance & I begged for the recipe, so that’s why you’ve got it here!

The recipe says it makes a dozen muffins plus 2 loaves; when I made a half recipe, it yielded not quite 18 muffins. You can choose how & if you want to divvy up the batter. As an added bonus, if you make a half recipe, you’ll have plenty of pumpkin left over in a standard can to make these delicious pumpkin chocolate-chip squares. Just saying.

• 3 to 4 extra-ripe bananas, peeled & mashed (2 cups)
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole-wheat flour
• 1 Tbsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. cloves
• 1 cup chopped dates
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup sliced almonds

1. Preheat oven to 350. Generously grease muffin tin &/or loaf pan(s). Combine bananas, pumpkin, eggs, & sugar in mixer bowl. Beat in applesauce.
2. In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Stir into banana mixture until just combined.
3. Fold in dates, raisins, & almonds.
4. Spoon 1/4 cup of batter into each muffin cup; pour remaining batter into loaf pans, if applicable.
5. Bake muffins for 20 minutes or loaves for 60 minutes. Cool in pan 5 minutes, then cool completely on wire rack.

I’ve been a little under the weather, but I’ll hopefully have another recipe post up soon.

While my cousins all competed in swimming & water polo, going to the Junior Olympics & getting college scholarships in the process, I…. was in the band. So athleticism is not something that I’ve exactly done all my life. And after kid number two my body’s not exactly bouncing back like it probably should be. So how can I get started when I’ve never really had a diet program or fitness routine?

That’s where SlimKicker comes in. It’s a calorie counter & game (similar to CalorieKing, for those of you who are more experienced with the whole healthy lifestyle thing than I am) that turns your diet & fitness goals into a level-up game. Earn points by tracking your healthy calories & completing mini health challenges like giving up chocolate for a week. Then snap & upload a photo of a cheat food — Magnolia cupcake, anyone? – or that killer pair of shoes you’ve been coveting, & when you reach the designated number of points for being good, SlimKicker reminds you to reward yourself! They also have forums & support groups with other like-minded people to help you reach your health & fitness goals.

Sounds pretty nifty, right?

What would be even niftier? This fantastic Pyle HR monitor & calorie counter!

leave a comment below with a fun, creative fitness or diet challenge you’d like to use in your SlimKicker regimen. They’ll choose their favorite, & the winner will get this fantastic to help you with your goals! Comments will be accepted until 9pm Eastern next Wednesday, the 8th.

I look forward to seeing your ideas & hopefully using some for myself! Good luck!

The Munchkin (& even Mini-Munchkin, who wouldn’t turn away from the TV long enough to nurse, let alone fall asleep, for some time) loved staying up late to watch. It got her as excited about the Games as I hoped it would.

Our special treat for our Olympic watching party? These popcorn ball “torches.”

This recipe has only a few ingredients, but getting the caramel to the right consistency (not too hard, not too soft) can be tricky. This makes enough for 8, 3- to 4-inch balls.

• 2 bags microwave popcorn, popped (I love kettle corn)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup corn syrup
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 small bags M&Ms in Olympic colors (let your Munchkin help you remove the orange ones; dark brown counts as black)
• colored cardstock or scrapbook paper, formed into a narrow cone & taped

1. Combine sugar, corn syrup, & cream. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
2. Boil 3 minutes, until “soft ball” stage. (This will happen quicker than you think.)
3. Place popcorn in a large bowl, then pour caramel over the top. Stir to coat. Sprinkle M&Ms throughout & carefully stir. Some may melt a little.
4. When mixture has cooled slightly, form into balls. (This will take longer than you think; do it too soon & you WILL get second-degree burns. Not that I know from personal experience…)
5. When fully cooled, place atop cones (or just hold in your hands) & enjoy!

I love the athleticism, competition, the drama, & how for 2 weeks every 2 years (we’re thinking winter too) everyone becomes an expert. I love watching people from all over the world come together in the spirit of sportsmanship. And I love that this year I get to pass it on to The Munchkin.

Why are the Olympics so important? Why bother giving Olympic Fever to the rising generation? My friend Kalani wrote a fantastic essay answering that question. There are so many important lessons that athletic competition can teach kids: patriotism, the importance of working hard, how to be a good sport, & – perhaps most importantly in this age of rising childhood obesity – that moving is fun.

So I encourage you to let your Munchkins watch a competition or two with you this year to help them catch The Fever. Here’s how we’re starting with ours.

We’ve decided to let her stay up late to watch some of the Opening Ceremonies Friday, & have started getting her into the spirit by introducing her to the logo & the colors this week by decorating the apartment a little at Munchkin height. We made our own Olympic Rings into a paper chain, with The Munchkin telling me which color strip came next. After just one sheet of construction paper of each color, she had those colors down!

Next she drew her own Olympic Rings. Not a bad first attempt!

Finally, to help her learn a little more about the sports & the competition, I made up a quick medal count chart using clip art to illustrate each category. I had no idea there were so many! If you want one of your own, download it here. Get the medals here — you may need to add extra paper on the side for the swimming category, if it’s anything like 2008 was!

We have a couple other ideas too that I’ll be posting soon. How are you introducing your kids to the Olympics?

I think I underestimate how much I love pudding. It’s not something I ordinarily think to buy, but maybe it should be: it was the first thing I ate after my C-section (thank you, breech Mini-Munchkin). I ate it with every subsequent meal in the hospital. Hmmm… Pudding with every meal? I could go for that!

In the meantime, here’s pudding with dessert.

• 1 premade graham cracker crust
• 1 box (the big one, not the small one) vanilla instant pudding
• 2 cups cold skim milk
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp. clear vanilla extract
• 1 pint blueberries, washed & dried

1. Prepare the pudding as directed on the package, just with 2 cups milk instead of 3. Chill in the refrigerator.
2. Whip the cream, sugar, & vanilla. Fold about 1/3 of it into prepared pudding.
3. Spread half of the pudding mixture into the bottom of the crust.
4. Carefully spread another 1/3 of the whipped cream over the pudding, then top with almost all of the blueberries.
5. Spread remaining pudding to hide the blueberries, then top with remaining whipped cream & sprinkle remaining blueberries on top.
6. Serve with a spoon; this will get messy!

With that, here’s the first of what will likely be many quick-prep meals for those nights when you have literally 5 minutes in the kitchen.

A friend of mine from my local chapter of the National MOMS Club brought this dish over after I had the Mini-Munchkin. This thick, hearty, almost-chili soup was an instant hit, so I asked her for the recipe. It was so easy she was actually embarrassed to give it to me! But I love easy, so I’m not embarrassed at all to share this with you.

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• 3/4 cup water*
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can condensed tomato soup
• 2 cans black beans, undrained
• 2 cans corn, drained
• tortilla chips, cheese, sour cream, etc., for serving

*or however much your particular taco seasoning calls for

1. Brown the ground beef. Drain.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add taco seasoning & water. Stir.
3. Add remaining ingredients. Stir.
4. Cover; simmer until heated through or as long as you want.

That’s it! Yum!

For starters, this is the party theme I bought. However, rather than buying everything to fit the theme, I saved money by only buying the swirly hanging decorations (see below), tablecloths, invitations, & dessert plates. For everything else–flatware, napkins, dinner plates, & even a couple extra tablecloths–I bought cheaper, solid-color items in the party’s colors: light blue, purple, & hot pink. I also got balloons in those colors.

The Munchkin was insistent that the kids all wear party hats, so we got assorted solid-color ones at Party City that happened to match the theme colors really well, then decorated them with sea animal stickers together. She loved helping! In previous years I would’ve been too much of a perfectionist to let her help.

(In the interest of full disclosure, we learned rather quickly that paper hats tend to dissolve after several minutes atop wet heads. But they were fun & they stayed on for the cake, which is what The Munchkin wanted anyway.)

Now for my favorite part: the favor buckets. I bought these sandcastle buckets from Party City for 99 cents (my advice: sign up for their emails before you order; I started getting all sorts of discount offers after I’d placed my order!). They come in 8 different colors, so I’m sure they’d match your theme colors. Then I filled them with awesome cheap sea-life-themed favors from Oriental Trading Company. I hate the buckets that are full of useless crap, so I tried to choose things the kids would actually like to use. The Munchkin loves bubbles, stickers (those were from Party City & also delightfully cheap; we bought extra to decorate the hats with), & stampers, so we included those & a squirty fish thing, then a bag of Goldfish & just a few pieces of candy. To assemble them, we grouped like items together & formed an assembly line; it taught The Munchkin to follow patterns!

These buckets would be great for any ocean-type theme. They received lots of compliments, & they were simple & inexpensive!

Next, the thank-you notes that came with the party supplies were the fill-in-the-blank kind. Those are great for kids who are learning to write, but The Munchkin’s still young enough that I’m doing the writing for her. So fill-in-the-blank would be kind of a copout. Instead, I bought blank notecards from Target (again, they come in lots of cute colors) & puffy stickers from Michael’s (can you tell I like stickers?). The Munchkin & I decorated the cards in little sea life scenes. You could do this with any theme imaginable & it’d look great!

Last but not least, activities. One of the great perks of having the party at the splash park was I didn’t have to coordinate activities. But with Tropical Storm Debby threatening, I came up with a couple last-minute things to keep the kids busy under the pavilion in case we had a momentary downpour. I printed an Ariel coloring page & a couple of sea animal coloring pages & had a bucket of crayons. Then we let the kids make jellyfish. To prep, just cut cheap white paper plates in half & have streamers & a stapler handy. The kids color their jellyfish, & then you tear off some streamers & staple them to the straight side. So easy!

So there you go! Hope this helps with the planning of any ocean-themed parties in the future. Just remember to listen to your own Munchkin rather than what the professionals on Pinterest think, & keep it simple: if you overdo it this year, you’ll just have to try to outdo yourself next year!

Good luck!