recipe: carmelized apple pork chops

I stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest several months ago and, having pork chops on hand, decided to give it a try. It has quickly become one of our go-to, quick and easy weeknight recipes.

Caramelized Apple Pork Chops

4 boneless pork chops, 3/4-inch thick

2 tablespoons brown sugar

Salt and black pepper to taste

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 tablespoons butter

2 medium tart apples, cored and cut in 1/8" slices

1 small sweet onion, sliced thin

Heat skillet over medium-high heat. Season chops with salt and pepper on both sides. Saute chops, 5-6 minutes, turning occasionally, until both sides are evenly browned. Remove chops from pan; keep warm.

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, salt, pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add butter to skillet; stir in brown sugar mixture, onion and apples. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes or just until apples are tender.

Remove apple mix with a spoon and arrange on top of chops; serve warm.

progect life: keeping it simple...

When I'm asked about Project Life and my process, one of the questions/comments that comes up regularly is this: "Our weeks are boring, what would I journal?" My best answer is to keep it simple and to make the mundane, everyday stuff work for you. 

 {May 14 - May 20}

This week was a perfect example.  Not a whole lot happened, I didn't take many photos and I thought it might be a struggle to fill the two pages.  Instead, I focused on the little things. I took a cell photo of my Kindle Fire screen to show what I'm reading right now, used tags from a couple of G's new character t-shirts to show what he is amused by at the moment, took a photo of J with his favorite toys and used a quote filler card.  Done.

On the right side, I included a screen shot of my Instagram home page (because I noticed that I had reached 200 followers) and took a cell phone photo of my jury duty summons. Is this super interesting stuff?  Maybe not today.  But, as my family and I look back on these albums 5, 10 or 20 years from now these little additions will tell a story about what life was like in 2012 and will give the album so much more context and meaning.

I challenge you to try the same. Don't feel like you have to keep a running narrative and search for words and stories every single day.  Add in a grocery receipt, a utility bill, an appointment card or some clothing tags.  These seemingly little bits will be valuable to your family story later.

project life: still chugging...

Last week was eventful (insert huge understatement) so, I just finally finished the spreads from the past two weeks yesterday. My affinity for using washi tape accents continues, as does the use of printable journaling cards found around the web. And, yes, inserts.  I can't seem to get away with many weeks sticking to the two page format. The sign of a full life, I suppose!

{April 30 - May 6}
The week was bookended with family visits, Jack discovered how to grab the toys on his play mat and bring them to his mouth and Mr. Boom went on a job interview

Insert (Front): We visited my cousin and her family on Saturday and one of the highlights of the day was our walk to the river's edge to toss rocks

 

G helped paint a monogram for J's side of the room, J finally decided tummy time wasn't so terrible and we got to spend a lot of time outside after several days of rain during the week

{May 7 - May 13}
BIG happenings for our family this week. Mr. Boom decided to stay with his current employer with brand-new perks, I resigned from my company after 14.5 years to be a stay at home mom to our two boys (!!!) and J turned 3 months. I did say it was a big week!

J rolled over for the first time and I was lucky enough to catch it in photos, Mr. Boom and I had a celebratory sushi dinner and my parents visited for Mother's Day

 Insert (front): Footprint butterfly. We made one for each of the YiaYias and I made sure to get an extra set to keep.

Insert (back): A mini-layout about J at 3 months

The Keep Calm card I used this week is a custom piece and you can easily make your own here: Keep Calm Generator

As always, click on any photo for more detail.

jack: three months of you...

Dear Jack,
Happy quarter year little guy! You fit so seamlessly into our family that it feels some days as if you have always been with us, though your birth date states otherwise. You are such a happy baby, full of smiles and giggles. Face to face interaction is your favorite thing right now and we are thrilled to oblige!
At three months you:

• were almost sleeping through the night, until the 12 week growth spurt struck
• are wearing 3 month clothes and size 2 diapers
• weigh 12lbs, 7oz (25%) and are 24" long (35%)
• wake up happy and smiling every morning
• love to giggle when we blow raspberries and when spoken to, especially in Greek!
• have a tickle spot, on your left side under your ribcage
• chew on or clasp your hands much of the time
• stare intently at your feet when you kick
• mimic our sounds and facial expressions
• smile when we echo your sounds
• like chewing on Sofie the Giraffe
• can play for an hour or more on your play mat and can now grab the toys and bring them to your mouth
• love watching your brother zoom around the house at play
• enjoy bath time
• love when we blow raspberries and are trying hard to figure them out for yourself

We love you to the moon and back, and again!
Mama

project life tuesday..

Sharing another week of our family Project Life album today. Though my goal is not to turn this blog into a PL project, it sure seems to be trending that way. I have a few other things to share in the next few weeks so, bear with me!

This weeks album pages came together in less than two hours today, thanks to having done a few of the cards last week here and there and keeping things simple.

{April 23-29}

 

project life: another week, another insert...

Look, an update in real time! I can't quite believe it myself.  Somehow my pages for Project Life came together in about two hours total this week.  So fast that I was still had daylight to take photos, upload, edit and even post here. Maybe this is my system really working? Here's hoping...

{April 16 - 22}

LEFT: Baby amidst laundry, record high temperatures in April, pain at the pump, a video chat screen capture, more park photos and a note about our brilliant toddler all on one side.

RIGHT: Tree hugging, brotherly love, coffee (yes, please!), discovering toys and a cute little baby tush.

INSERT FRONT: I hadn't planned on yet another insert this week (3 weeks running!) but, we had such a wonderful day on Sunday with too many photos to choose just one. The divided photo page I used not a PL product but, works great and is available here, if interested.

INSERT BACK: Front and back are about how we made the most of a rainy day inside with pita pizzas, baking cookies, drawing and stickering and fun with pipe cleaners and a colander.

 

{As always, click on any photo for more detail}

project life: a FIVE week update...

True to the promise I made to myself when starting Project Life this year, I have been staying right on top of it and am caught up through this past weekend.  Blogging about it, well, obviously, that's another story! To redeem myself this post is a massive update complete with the past five weeks of our family album, including two inserts.

{March 12 - 18}

 

{March 19 - 25}

 

{March 26 - April 1}

 

{April 2 - 8}

Insert (front): George's 1st Easter Egg Hunt

Insert (back): Jack at 2 months and his 1st Easter Bunny photo
(many thanks to Tania for the adorable felt whale!)

 

{April 3 - 15}

Insert (front): G's 1st kite and J's 1st picnic. There were just too many photos I wanted to use not to include another page for this family day at the park.

Insert (back): Orthodox Easter

 

 

I am loving using Instagram photos, scaled down and inserted here, there and everywhere.  I strongly believe that the best camera is the one you have in your hand. Many times, for me, that is the camera on my iPhone. I process my favorites in Instagram and always often have a difficult time choosing my favorites by the end of the week. Instead of forcing a full card of journaling for every single day of the week, often a small photo with a few words tells an even better story.

Also notice my obsession with use of both washi tape and labels.  I am really trying to keep this album fairly simple in order to stay caught up but, I still like to add a few little touches.  Washi tape makes it very easy to add a little pattern and color with no fuss. And, using labels cuts way down on editing time. Instead of adding a lot of text to photos pre-printing, a label works just as well, if not better.  I'm partial to the Martha Stewart for Avery line available at Staples. They are super inexpensive compared to scrapbooking supplies, readily available, great quality and come in a lot of beautiful colors. Add in these things plus a few free printable journaling cards found around the web (check out my Project Life board on Pinterest) and, there you have it!

I'm still doing this...and truly loving it :)