a chilly walk along the river

we were so happy to see the sun come out this weekend, especially since it was overcast and dreary for several days in a row last week.  so, despite the fact that it was bitterly cold outside, we bundled up and took a walk along the river by our house in order to enjoy the sun shine while it lasted.

while we were walking along the river, we were so surprised to see a little river otter who was swimming around and ducking under trees and branches.  he was really cute!

even though it was super cold outside, we really enjoyed our chilly walk along the river.

love, laurie

roasted vegetable salad with chickpeas and feta cheese

we really enjoyed the healthy southwestern quinoa salad that we made last week.  we took it to work all week for lunch, and it was delicious.  this week, we were looking for another healthy salad recipe, and we were happy that we found this one . . .

this roasted vegetable salad with chickpeas and feta cheese is a delicious healthy salad for lunch.  the roasted vegetables give the salad a deep and rich flavor that combines perfectly with the mild chickpeas and the salty feta cheese.  the honey adds just the right amount of sweetness to balance out the vinegar in the dressing too.  this salad is great for keeping you full and satisfied while still keeping your diet on track!

roasted vegetable salad with chickpeas and feta
prep time: 10-15 minutes
roasting time: 30 minutes
yields: 8 servings
adapted from annie's eats

salad ingredients:
1 quart grape tomatoes, halved
2 large red bell peppers, chopped
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1 (15 oz.) can whole kernel corn, drained and rinsed
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
2 (15 oz.) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
6 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup fresh chives, sliced

dressing ingredients:
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon honey

directions:
preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.  on a large cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil, combine the grape tomatoes, red bell pepper, red onion, corn, and garlic.  drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the vegetables and season with ground pepper.  toss to make sure that the vegetables are evenly coated.  roast the vegetables in the oven for 30 minutes.  once done, remove the roasted vegetables from the oven, and allow them to cool completely.  in a large bowl, combine the roasted vegetables with the chickpeas, feta, and chives.  in a separate bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients.  pour the dressing over the salad and toss to make sure that the salad is evenly coated with the dressing.  refrigerate and serve cold.

enjoy!

love, laurie

today . . .

. . . we have the day off from work, and we plan on spending it at home with this guy.  he has great posture, doesn't he?  as soon as i got my camera out to take a picture of him sitting on the dining room table, he started posing like this.  he kept turning his head slightly as i took the pictures, just like a model would at a professional photo shoot.  he's such a ham for the camera!  :-)

happy monday!

love, laurie

hello there, three-day weekend!

even though it is a very chilly 18 degrees outside this morning, the sun is shining.  just look at that view of the sun rising over a snow-covered field on my way into work early this morning!

thank goodness it's friday!  this week sure was crazy.  i can't even tell you how excited i am to have a three-day weekend ahead of us.  this weekend i am looking forward to relaxing and spending some time with my boys!

have a great weekend!

love, laurie

snapshots of life lately, according to my iphone pictures

. . . and ryan's iphone too.

{iphone pictures via the instagram app}

southwestern quinoa salad

it's the middle of january, and that means it's time to kick those new year's resolutions into high swing.  for those of you who resolved to eat healthier this year, here's the perfect recipe for you.

no doubt, quinoa has been a popular fad lately, but at least it is a healthy fad.  for those of you are aren't acquainted with quinoa yet, it is a seed (not a grain) that is loaded with fiber, folic acid, and minerals.  quinoa is actually a close relative of spinach and rhubarb.  since quinoa is so nutritious,  it is a great alternative to wheat for people on gluten-free or low-gluten diets.  quinoa makes a great stand alone side dish all by itself, but since it is so mild tasting, it is also great when mixed in salads like this one.

this salad is light, and is not too spicy at all.  not only is this salad great tasting, but it is super healthy too.  it will also stay good in the refrigerator for several days, which is great if you want to make it over the weekend and take it to work for lunch during the week like we did.

southwestern quinoa salad
prep time: 10-15 minutes
cooking time: 15-20 minutes
yields: 8 servings
adapted from kalyn's kitchen

ingredients:
1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups water
1 (15 oz.) can black beans
1 (15 oz.) can whole kernel corn
2 large red bell peppers, chopped
1 cup scallions, sliced
1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
juice of 1 large lime
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1-2 teaspoons garlic powder
3-4 teaspoons chili powder

directions:
pour the dry quinoa and water into a sauce pan, and bring the water to a boil.  reduce the heat to a low simmer, and cook covered until all of the water has been absorbed by the quinoa (about 15 minutes).  once the quinoa is completely cooked, fluff the quinoa with a fork and set it aside to cool.

drain the black beans and the corn in a colander and rinse thoroughly with cold water.  pat dry with a paper towel, and pour the beans and corn into a large bowl.  add the chopped red bell pepper, sliced scallions, and chopped cilantro.  in a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, black pepper, garlic powder, and chili powder.  pour the dressing over the salad, and toss well.  add the cooled quinoa to the salad and toss well, making sure that the salad is evenly coated with the dressing.  season to taste with additional black pepper, garlic powder, or chili powder.  refrigerate and serve cold.  

enjoy!

love, laurie

after spending all night in the veterinary emergency room, saying that we are exhausted would be an understatement.

really, it's a long story, so here are the highlights . . . late last night, we realized that our sweet little kitten swallowed something that he shouldn't have swallowed.  knowing that we had to act fast, we quickly took him to the 24 hour veterinary emergency center near our house.  after 5 hours and $292, the doctors were able to retrieve what leko had swallowed, and we brought him back home with us to recuperate.

last night was stressful to say the least.  ryan and i had to think quickly on our feet, and i am proud of us for working together as a team.  i am even prouder of us for knowing that we both had strong gut feelings and sticking with those feelings to make a decision together (even though it was not a decision that the doctor recommended).  in the end, we made the decision that was best for leko.  even the doctor was amazed how well everything turned out.  sometimes you just have to trust your kitty-parent instincts.  

i'm happy to say that this morning leko is doing much better.  today, the three of us are home trying to recover from the trauma and stress of last night (and trying to catch up on a whole lot of lost sleep).  we sure do love that little guy of ours!

love, laurie

a night out to watch some ice hockey

if you know us at all, you know that we are not big sports fans.  when it comes to sports, we usually don't know what is going on.  we typically do sit down to watch the super bowl each year, but only because we want to see the infamous commercials and the half-time show (and because it's an excuse to eat football-type food).

so, you might find it pretty hard to believe that we went to an ice hockey game on saturday night.  the university where we work was offering discounted tickets for saturday night's game, so we thought we would make a little date night out of it.

our seats were right behind one of the goals, so every time the players would head toward the goal, i flinched.  i can't believe how fast they move and how hard they throw each other around.  (two players snapped their hockey sticks in half!)  thank goodness there was a plexiglass partition between them and us!

the wilkes-barre scranton penguins played the adirondack phantoms, and the penguins won (2-1).  overall it was pretty neat, but i still think hockey is incredibly too violent for my liking.

hope everyone had a great weekend!

love, laurie

nyc: cake boss cafe

we really enjoyed our visit to nyc for my birthday (here and here).  while we were in the city on sunday, we decided to make a quick pit stop at the new cake boss cafe that just opened.  we are fans of the cake boss tv show on tlc, and we were curious to take a peek at the new cafe.  when we walked in, we were so surprised to see that buddy himself was there, live and in person!  it was very cool!  we also recognized a few other members of carlo's bakery from the show too . . .

. . . of course we had to get something while we were there.  (you can't just walk into a bakery and walk out empty handed!)  so, we tried a cannoli and a lobster tail since those are two of the pastries that buddy talks about the most on the show.  we brought them home and had them for dessert the next day.  we were pleasantly surprised at how good they were.  (ryan actually said it was one of the best cannolis that he had ever had!)

have a great weekend!
love, laurie

nyc: an afternoon in chelsea

we had such a great time in nyc on my birthday.  after we left rockefeller center, we spent the afternoon in chelsea.  chelsea is so peaceful and pretty, and it was especially quiet since it was a sunday afternoon.  we felt like we almost had the neighborhood to ourselves.

on our way down to chelsea, we passed the flatiron building which is one of the coolest landmarks in the city in my opinion.

while we were in chelsea . . . we had pizza for lunch at company, stopped by billy's bakery for a birthday cupcake, walked around chelsea market, tasted nearly everything in the filling station store, ate an amazing dinner at cafeteria, and grabbed doughnuts to take home from doughnut plant.

love, laurie