a staple at our house

i was so in love w/ the tomato basil hummus from trader joes but it was kinda pricey for a little container so i figured out how to do it myself:

1 can garbanzo beans, drain half the liquid
3 T tahini (ground sesame seed, found in the international food section of most grocery stores)
2 T lemon juice
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 can stewed tomato
1/2 can tomato paste
5 big fresh basil leaves

pour all ingredients into a blender and puree.
pour into bowl and drizzle w/ olive oil

serve w/ pita chips or blue corn chips or any way you like

mexican quinoa salad

i know a lot of you read my happy little life but there are some who don't and i just wanted to add my testimony of the mexican quinoa salad! i know a lot of you would enjoy it, too!!

quinoa (pronounced 'keen-wah' in case you have to ask for it. read about it. it's so good for you. a whole grain that's hight in fiber and has 5g of protein in 1/4 c. you can find it at costco, tj's or any health food store.) was new to me but the salad sounded so good and after our meal tonight, i just sat there pondering the experience.

i'll post the receipe here because that puts you one click closer to making it.
it's from delicious by nature:

• Measure desired amount of quinoa into a large bowl
• Pour water over grain and scrub grains together
• Pour off top layer of water, add more water and scrub again
• Pour quinoa into a fine mesh strainer and now you’re ready to cook!

Salad:
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
2 cups water
1 mango, peeled and diced (use a big one, it was my favorite part)
1/2 can black beans (8 oz), drained and rinsed (i used a whole can)
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeds removed and diced (i just used canned, already diced and drained juice. i also served them on the side so they could be added to each person taste.)
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 avocado, diced

Dressing:
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 4 lemons
1 chipotle pepper in adobo plus 1 tsp of juice (you can find these canned in the mexican section of your local grocery store)
1 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/8 tsp cinnamon
Salt and pepper to taste

Bring water to boil in a medium pot on stove top. Once it is at a boil add in quinoa and return to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover - cook for 15 minutes until water has been absorbed.

While quinoa is cooking, cut vegetables in preparation for assembling salad.

Pour olive oil into the bottom of the large bowl that you will be serving in. Blend the remaining dressing ingredients in a blender until combined (about 20 seconds). Pour into the bowl with the olive oil and whisk to combine. (i followed kelly's advice and served the salad w/ just the olive oil, juice from one lemon and salt and pepper. we served the blended dressing on the side so we could each add it to taste because it's a little spicy. the adults loved it!! but beckam perferred it w/o the dressing. jaden and asher would have preferred just plain black bean w/o the rest of the salad.)

When quinoa is done add it to the bowl along w/ the fruits & vegetables and toss.

If you have time, it is best if you let the salad sit covered in the refrigerator for about an hour to let the flavors combine. This salad was also great the next day, though you may want to add the avocado closer to serving in order to keep it from browning.

we served it as a meal w/ pineapple chunks, cantaloupe and rolls!

is there something seriously wrong with me?

we just got back yesterday evening from an AWESOME trip covering colorado, wyoming, nebraska and south dakota (more details later) and i'm already planning our next one. here is our agenda for any of you sac/davis folk who might be interested:

Monday
1:00: Jelly Belly Factory
3:30 ish: Play at Community park in Davis
Nugget Sandwiches for dinner!!!
Frozen Yogurt for dessert

Tuesday
10am: Sac Zoo
Lunch and Fairytale Town
No evening plans

Wednesday--Davis Day
9:00: Arboretum/Visit Horses (maybe cows,too)
10:30: Solano Park Playground by my old house

12:30: Plutos for lunch (or somewhere yummy downtown)
2:00-4:30: Rec Pool
(Clean up at the Wiscombe's)
5:30: Dinner at Farmers Market
More Frozen Yogurt

(I'd like to make a trip to the DI in Sac on Thurs. maybe)

We'll leave sometime Thurs. or maybe Fri.

long time no blog

and posting is the last thing i should be doing right now since we leave at 4 am to fly out to nebraska for a family reunion. except we don't actually get to fly to nebraska. we fly to colorado--the closest airport to the little town we're trying to get to in nebraska and then drive the rest of the way. the boys are super excited because it's cowboy country and truly they were born to live on a ranch. it will be a great trip i'm sure and a great excuse to see the whole nilsson crew again and a good amount of dyers (though some will be missed!).

today was the day that taco bell, a dr. pepper and finding nemo saved my life (or maybe it was my kids life). it's seriously the littlest things when you're a mom.

also today, i found jaden attempting to change asher's dirty diaper. clean diaper was in place, asher laying down on top of it, wipes open and ready and jaden mustering up the nerve to open the dirty one. i sat down and asked if he'd like my help to which he happily obliged. i handed him a wipe to help when he replied, "when the girl is doing the dishes, i'm going to offer to do them and she can change the baby." i asked if "the girl" meant his wife. affirmative. at least he's planning to share the work load. i also told him he may feel differently when he has a baby. because his dadddy had never changed a baby in his life and when jaden was born, i didn't change a diaper until he was 2 days old.

catch up:
we spent two weeks in bakersfield at the beginning of summer, which included a great getaway for micah and i to attend the wedding of two fabulous friends in los angeles and have a brief visit with the maughans. the boys did a sports camp together the week after we got home, which was the greatest decision ever (1-3, m-f: perfect). and today they finished their two-week swim school and not only do they look like little pros but they had a great time. beckam was SO excited for swim lessons to really learn how to swim, which is a huge change for him. he's usually very apprehensive about new situations but really seems to be maturing in that area. i'm sure it helps to have a big brother to keep up with.

last weekend we had a visit from the hill clan for 4th of july, which was a blast as usual. we met them in santa cruz and spent the day at the boardwalk. it was cousin heaven! ashlyn (14) was supposed to meet up w/ some friends but chose to stay w/ the family to hang out w/ her cousins--so sweet!!

so there's a quick recap on this familyofperpetualmotion. we'll be home a few days afer this trip before heading up to davis for some more summer fun. the jelly belly factory, sac zoo, rec pool, arboretum, farmers market, solano park and fun friends are all on the agenda!