Italy with Granny

While my mom was here, we all headed to Italy for a few days. The five hour ride down went remarkably well. Most likely because Granny was non-stop entertainment in the backseat and there was tons of food.

When we got there, the fun just kept going. They goofed around a lot on the floor which was especially remarkable because the tile floor was freezing.

When we got too cold, we turned to board games of all sorta of types and sizes. And complexity. And spontaneously revolving rules.

Jelly Bean tended to focus on slippers to keep her feet warm. Can anyone be more adorable?

Thankfully we all also had the Mr.'s almost constant cooking to warm us up.

Although it rained most of our time there, we took advantage of the one nice day. We got out of the house and into the beautiful little villages at the bottom of the hill and along the lakeshore.

Of course, ice cream and other sweets were included! 

We also took a little field trip to this place. This beautiful, glorious place.

Afterwards we all took a walk....

Like Granny, like grandbaby. 

...and a massive, massive nap. 

Only now, more than two months later, reviewing these pictures, did I realize the gift my mother left behind. Pictures of the entire Steinbach clan. Pictures of small moments of parenting usually missed. THANK YOU for those beautiful pictures, Mom. Thank you.

Two pictures of all four of the Steinbach clan! Amazing.

Thank you mom.


xo

Aunt Kiwi's Cooking

**Failed to hit 'publish' - late but still fun.**

Not only is my future sister-in-law, Aunt Kiwi, smart, ambitious, and beautiful, she is also one hell of a cook. Shortly before they had to fly home, she was kind enough to cook a lovely dinner for us and my parents-in-law.

While Uncle Frannie was roped into soux chef duties...

PJ entertained the masses with his new jumping skills...

And his always improving yelling skills.

While Jelly Bean and Opa hung out on the couch, chatting up the day. 

In those last crucial minutes of cooking, my brother and I snagged a picture of how much we love each other. Not much has changed since we were kids, really. Just that he is taller and bigger and stronger than me. Which sucks cause it makes beating him up really difficult.

And then the feast was ready! 

I'm not sure how we did it, but we all enjoyed a bi-lingual conversation with the wonderful food. Maybe it was the wine that made it possible?

And then the kiddos were exhausted and the night already over.

We are going to miss these guys when they take off.

XO

Mexican

Right before my mom, Granny, took off back to the US, we took her out for Mexican food in our little town. Kind of ironic that we were in Germany and headed out for Mexican, but the food there is really, really good.

And my mom seems to like irony and I think she was just excited to get out with all of us for one last time, especially since during her three weeks with us we dealt with the flu, a series of infections, a cold, as well as a set of fevers.

The Steinbach clan.

We love this restaurant because they are so friendly to everyone, especially kids, and the food and drinks are all made in-house. They also have kick-ass drinks. I may enjoy the kick-ass drinks the most...though the guac is way up on the list too.

Mom doesn't drink alcohol...but she's a hell of a ham for the camera.

We always start the meal off with guacamole. The guacamole is excellent and the chips are homemade, fresh, warm, and crispy. PJ insisted in helping us all put the guac onto our chips, mostly choosing to either eat (or at least lick) our chips before he handing them over.

Eating with a toddler is not for those with a weak stomach.

Getting the guac onto the chips requires concentration.

When our meals arrived, the "small kids portion of french fries" turns out to be much larger than any of us expected. PJ was thrilled! For the record, we had to get the ketchup refilled and he ate about half of those fries.

Thankfully we actually remembered to bring a bib with us because PJ got just about as much into his face, onto his face, and all over his bib.  

And that was before he started playing around with his Granny. The last few blogs are full of fun pictures and videos of them playing together. Even out to eat, they got on so well together; PJ of course setting the tone and leading the games. Just like here:

Of course, PJ got bored quickly and, thankfully, was free to walk around the room, trying out almost every free seat while the owners goofed around with him. As the three adults finished our meals, we all began to join into the fun. My mom caught this picture of the three of us enjoying each other.

 

And then dinner was over, just like Granny's three weeks with us: too quickly and although we knew it was coming, still sad when it ended.

The next morning, we finally managed to grab a picture of all four of us right before I drove Granny to the airport.

 

The next morning, PJ looked everywhere for his "Annie" (Granny). I think its safe to say we are all looking forward to seeing her and other guests soon!


xo

Lucky's Taproom and Eatery

Over a year ago my uncle made good on a long-term dream and opened up his own bar in Dayton, Ohio, with a name and theme to honor my deceased Grandpa (his dad), called Lucky's Taproom and Eatery. http://www.luckystaproom.com/

We finally got to see open and serving on this vacation. PJ was enamored with the toy cars that once belonged to his great-grandpa, leading to a good amount of singing.  Loud singing.

Great Aunt L-Lady chilling with PJ.

Great Nana and PJ loving on the toy cars.

Great Uncle Drewmeister, owner & operator, and PJ interest.

The lunch crew and our soul-singer PJ.

xo

Ruining Dinner

These days I'm cooking a lot of dinner and while doing so I'm trying hard to make it colorful and healthy. For example, tonight we had fish, potatoes, and steamed broccoli; a nice, balanced meal. In general I try to eat relatively healthy. I don't do fast food - in fact, I drive the Mr. nuts with my inability to order correctly at McDonald's (in my defense they make it way too difficult) - and with my sensitivity to fructose, most processed foods make me ill.

But I love me some brown sugar frosted Poptarts. L.O.V.E. And you just can't buy brown sugar frosted Poptarts in Germany. Maybe because something like that can't get much more processed or unnatural. That seems to creep the Germans out. Fair enough. But I still love my brown sugar frosted Poptarts.

Occasionally I get a care package in my mail with some inside. Usually they have gotten a bit beaten up in the international mail, are in a bunch of pieces, and I have to toast them in my oven. And I still do a little happy dance; they still taste super yummy; and I'm still sad when I run out (which always happens way too quickly).

So imagine my joy when an extra large box of brown sugar frosted Poptarts was handed over to me this morning at my MOPS meeting. Poptarts that didn't get crushed in the mail. Poptarts in one piece that I can - and already have - toasted in my toaster.



Sometimes you just gotta forget being healthy and ruin your dinner.


xo
ps. I still ate the fish, broccoli and potato. I need the calories for nursing. *cough*

PJ's First Victim

Little Mr. PJ has claimed his first growth victim:

This adorable pair of pants is officially too small for our little worm. Rest in peace.

Little man has grown so much that even my parents and the great-nana remarked earlier today that he has grown just since they got here six days ago. We are still struggling with how to best manage food for little man in balance with my exhaustion but he is growing, growing, growing!


xo

Cornflake Cordon Bleu

Surprise, surprise another food entry by the impatient pregnant lady (should I rename my blog?).

This is my family’s favorite brunch/breakfast dish called Bitner’s Eggs. It’s a yummy casserole made of layers of eggs, ham, cheese, and white bread, with a cornflake topping. Growing up I remember trying to get the biggest piece possible in the first serving because there was never a second serving. I have a clear memory of my two uncles, who were both in their teens at the time, holding back my aunt who is just a few years older than I am, while they emptied out the last scraps of food from the dish and into their mouths.

Yeah, its that yummy.

Every once in a while I pull out the recipe. With the exception of one memorable brunch – turns out the majority of the people were vegetarians and another large percentage of them were lactose intolerant – almost everyone has enjoyed the dish. It usually starts with:

“Cornflakes on top of soaked bread with eggs and ham? Um, I’ll start with a little piece.”

Followed by:

“This is actually good. I’ll have another piece.”

I don’t know why the dish is called Bitner’s eggs and it turns out to be relatively difficult to remember. Yesterday I brought the dish to a friend’s birthday. We went through the usual ritual of a small piece followed by another piece, although this time people thought it was a cream-based almond cake (not sure where that came from). Almost everyone asked me for the name and the ingredients of the dish and although I repeated “Bitner’s Eggs” a million times almost everyone missed it, misunderstood it, or forgot it.

So I started to tell people the name the Mr. gave the dish in a moment of genius. Its something easy to remember: Cornflake Cordon Bleu. He has a point. Chicken Cordon Bleu is a dish of chicken stuffed with ham and cheese with a crunchy covering. It’s fatty, filling, and super yummy - just like Cornflake Cordon Bleu.

Cornflake Cordon Bleu is it!



xo