Southern...With A LittLe..{p.e.c.a.n}

Coffee= L.oV.E in my house. :)

When I was little, I was a complete daddy's girl. I wanted to do everything my dad was doing. (One year for Easter, I slept in my parent's bedroom, and my dad's alarm clock fell off the nightstand into my Easter basket. I flipped out yelling, "Look daddy, I got a clock just like yours." Needless to say, he had to buy a new clock.)

Hmm, oh yeah…daddy’s girl.

So, my dad drank coffee every morning when I was growing up (& still does).

Well, I assumed that I should have coffee with him. ;)

{Insert COFFEE-MILK.}

If you are a parent—who drinks coffee, you probably know EXACTLY what I am talking about. If not, let me explain.

You put a TOUCH of coffee, a little sugar, and the rest milk.

Kids are clueless, but satisfied.

P.S. Go easy on the sugar or your kid will be a maniac in Target....like mine--after my dad fixed his coffee-milk...and he definitely didn't go easy on the sugar.

My whole point is...I started my addiction to coffee...EARLY in life, but it has stuck with me. And, I am glad it did. Drinking coffee is an outlet for me. In addition to helping me survive daily, it helps bring me back to my childhood and my relationship with my dad.

I drink coffee to start my day, to recharge after a long day, or even to just simply enjoy a few moments alone when it’s cold outside (which is hard to do with an exteremely ACTIVE four-year-old kiddo). Coffee makes me happy. There’s just something about it that makes my heart feel cozy and makes me feel completely calm.

I don’t care if it is brewed at home, or if I swing by a coffee shop, it’s wonderful.

I recently found a new coffee to be addicted to and it is so yumm-o.

PJ’S Coffee: SOUTHERN PECAN.

Oh. Heavens! It is DE-light-FUL!

I had no idea that there was a PJ’S in Baton Rouge, LA until recently. So, I am particularly enthusiastic about this BLOG.

If you haven’t been to PJ’S Coffee, you are missing out on something brilliant. Their history, culture, and flavor are to die for. Really.

Here’s some history:

The French introduced Coffee to New Orleans, LA in 1720.

PJ’s adds culture to coffee. They travel the globe to hand-select the FINEST coffee beans—from Sumatra to Ethiopia, from Colombia to Kenya.

The “PJ” stands for Phyllis Jordan: Founder. Her idea: to create unique coffee blends.

In my opinion, mission ACCOMPLISHED.

I keep going back to one word. CULTURE.

When I think about culture, in Louisiana, I think of New Orleans.

Everything about New Orleans screams culture.

Well, guess what? PJ’S roasts all their coffee in New Orleans, and it goes to each consumer straight from the roasting facility to a PJ’S store.

That makes me excited. I feel like I want to drink PJ’S coffee even more now because I feel like I get to experience a little New Orleans in every cup.

I am pretty passionate about this. I get excited over the little things in life.

Coffee is a little thing that plays a BIG role in my life.

So, knowing I can go enjoy a cup of coffee at PJ’S in Baton Rouge, or buy some beans to brew at home, makes me look forward to having some “ME” time.

Don’t have time to go enjoy the insanely comfortable atmosphere at PJ’S?

Not to worry.

Check out their website at: www.pjscoffee.com

You can order all their products online. #timesavingmomma (tip#2)

Want to hear a STEAL of a DEAL?

Like Iced Coffee? Want to buy a kit?

PJ’S on Essen Lane has them. Yep, that’s right.

………..AND, for ONLY $59.99.

STOP BY PJ’S @ 5565 ESSEN LANE and see what all the FUSS is about. :)

TOMORROW is NATIONAL COFFEE DAY!

Be sure to visit PJ’S New Orleans Facebook Page (click the link below) & print your coupon.

The coupon can be used at ANY PJ’S location folks!

So, print it and go use it at the ESSEN LANE location! I know, I will.

http://www.facebook.com/pjscoffee?ref=ts&sk=app_179209908797391#!/pjscoffee?sk=wall



Monday? Already?

Well, my weekend did not consist of much downtime. That's for SURE. I was expecting a quiet weekend with lots of cooking and TV watching. Not so much. I guess that's the part of life that changes the most when you become a parent. NO TIME FOR ANYTHING. HA! I wouldn't change it though. Canyon makes everything worth it.

I was home with my sick kiddo on Friday. I did some work from home, but I mostly played doctor. Checking Canyon's temperature, getting him tissues, and keeping his juice cup filled--yeah, those were the highlight of my day.

Saturday morning, soccer game. My son scored ONCE this Saturday in his game. We got our butts kicked--even though we don't really keep score. Thank goodness he has no idea if his team wins or loses, because my kid HATES to lose. I'm working teaching him that it's okay to lose sometimes and you have to be a good sport.

Then, I went to my mom's. I love going to my mom's. We talk about everything under the sun. It's a precious moment that I hope to share with my daughter (if I have one) one day. There will be a DEAR MOM coming soon. Grab your tissues!!!

I achieved something amazing on Saturday. I actually BOOKED my venue for my wedding. This is HUGE.

Yep! That's right. In June 2012, I will be a MARRIED woman. Strange to think about, but my life won't change all that much. I guess after six years, you are basically married anyway. Right?

So, lots of wedding plans being made. I have all of my ideas on {pinterest}. I couldn't be more excited about marrying my best friend. We have had our share of ups and downs over the years, but we are finally ending up RIGHT where we should be. I couldn't ask for a better man to be my husband.

**Vintage-Country. Should be a wedding to remember. :)

Good news, I got some PJ's coffee in the mail...

WOW! More to come on Wednesday!

F-O-U-R more days until OCTOBER. :)

Interested in {pinterest}?

Grey's premiere was last night. As always, I cried. I'm a hormonal woman, what can I say?

The ending quote by Meredith Grey really hit home for me.

  

"You think that true love is the only thing that can crush your heart; that will take your life and light it up or destroy it. Then you become a mother." 

How true is this statement?

Very.

Now, on to my new love.

One word: pinterest.

AMAZING! It's my new addiction. 

It's a great place to save all your crazy, fun ideas & steal other people's. :)

I've gotten a bunch of ideas for my upcoming wedding, holidays, food, my home, etc. 

It's fabulous. I just wanted to give you all a quick note to check it out.

And, find me: britt_hutch or find the link on the blog! :)

Coming soon: Cooking With Canyon & Passionate About PJ's. :)

Sorry so short...I'm home with a sick kiddo today..I'll post more this weekend.

Much Love,

Momma B!

How 'Bout THEM Apples?!?!?!?!

Okay, first...let me say, I haven't forgotten about the "Cooking with Canyon." I just honestly haven't found five spare minutes in my weekend yet. Next weekend, I promise.


Now, on to talk about some apples. My son goes to a church pre-k. He is in the four-year-old class. He goes five days a week, from 9AM until 2PM. He loves school. He seems to like his teacher.

So, in her class she has a discipline system that involves apples.

Green=Great Day!
Yellow=You Can Do Better
Red= OMG, what did you do?  
(Those are my interpretations)


So, my son decided it was okay to bring home a red apple from school last Monday.

Red.

Why?

He turned on the heater in the classroom two times. Hmm.
And, he got sent to the office. Hmm.

I mean, on one hand, yeah, my kid shouldn't have touched the heater, especially if his teacher told him not to. BUT, it's not like he punched some other kid in the face or said a bad word. No. He got in trouble for turning on a heater. Really?

I disciplined him how I thought he should be disciplined. We talked about what happened, he didn't get to watch a show before bath time, and I had to remind him that red apples=no soccer. If it was something bad enough, he wouldn't have played soccer on Saturday, but I just simply reminded him that if he got another apple, he was going to have to sit out on Saturday's game.

Needless to say, we had green apples for the next four days.

I think children need structure. My child is well-balanced. He is respectful, sweet, and can get a little crazy sometimes. But, what four-year-old can’t?

I’m sure we’ll have MANY more “red apple” situations throughout the next 13 years of school.


Lots of exciting things to come.

Someone Say..UNCLE.

So, Friday was, once again, SHOW-N-TELL for Canyon.

We had the letter "U" this week.

Now, like "I", there are limited options for a four-year-old to bring to school for show-n-tell that start with "U"....

Umbrella?  NO!

Ummm....what else?

Underwear? Right.

Uniform? BORING.

So, we decided to go with UNCLE.

Now, since neither my brother nor Dale's brother could make it to school for show-n-tell...I dug through boxes of pictures only to find that ALL of my pictures of Canyon with either of his uncles are on my computer.

With no time to print one, we asked Dale's mom for a picture of Uncle M* for him to bring to school. After a quick review of what to say, I placed the picture in his book sack and went to work.

Now, for you to truly grasp why we picked U-N-C-L-E....I should probably give you a little background information.

Uncle M* is Dale's brother and one of Canyon's favorite people in the world.

I am not exaggerating.

He loves everyone, but there is something about Uncle M* that Canyon just cannot get enough of. 

Sometimes I wonder what it could be that makes him so special.

I'll never know...

And, then, there's Uncle T (my brother). He's twenty-one and has the ability to act Canyon's age. It's truly amazing. ;) Kidding!


Honestly, I couldn't ask for my son to have two uncles better than M* and T.

He’s so blessed that he will have two uncles cheering for him at his games- just like last Saturday at his SOCCER game—both were there...(Uncle M* even had a sprained ankle and hobbled over on crutches) and Canyon couldn't have been happier. The smile on that kid's face makes everything you do....worth it.

He will have TWO uncles teaching him all about life and girls (lucky me).

And, most of all, he will have TWO uncles that will be there for him throughout his life for support, advice, or whatever else my child might need. That's how I know I am blessed-- because, my child has an amazing family that LOVES him more than anything.

Uncle. I’m glad we picked that for “U.” :

Needless to say, with my child's personality--his teacher tells me that his SHOW-N-TELL'S are HILARIOUS--and I believe it. He remembers everything. It's a blessing and a curse. HA!

Now, Soccer? WOW. That was interesting. My child scored three goals. YES, three—Two were in the wrong goal, but we’ll take them anyway. Canyon had a BLAST and played almost the entire game because some of the other kids were just tired.

He’s a trooper and I am extremely proud of him.

We still have to work with him a little to help him understand that in four-year-old soccer there is just NOT a goalie. HA!

Pictures:

I'm officially a S-O-C-C-E-R MOM &  I couldn't be happier.

Cooking With....Canyon? DEFINITELY.

Good Morning Readers,

Here's what I am thinking...

Julie Child said, "Nothing is too much trouble if it turns out the way it should." That's how I feel about cooking, and my life. Cooking, for me, is a stress reliever. It helps me to take a step back, relax, and think. Showing my son that being in the kitchen is fun is important to me.

And...

Canyon LOVES to help me in the kitchen. Odd? Nope. Not to my family, at least. I've been teaching Canyon all about the kitchen since he was itty bitty. We make cookies/cake for all holidays. He gets to help with this, and he is free to decorate (use your imagination--crazy!). I love, love, love to cook. Baking is fun too, but I'm definitely not the BEST at it. I do, however, bake all of Canyon's birthday cakes and I will continue to do so. I'll do the same when I have more kiddos. They actually haven't turned out THAT bad...(pictures coming soon)... :)


Back to the kitchen....


Anything I will let Canyon do, he is eager to do it.... I normally give him easy tasks--like stirring something in a bowl or pouring in ingredients...


But, now that he is getting older, I think it's time to give him some more things to do.


So, Canyon and I are going to be creating a few, kid-friendly (HEALTHY) recipes. This is going to be blogged for the next 3-4 entries, in addition to some other crazy, fun stuff I have planned. I am going to come up with/research a recipe, and teach Canyon how to help me make it.
Sound simple?


Think again. My child is WILD.


He cooks like his mommy ( I MAKE HUGE MESSES when I cook--My mom calls me Julia Child), and he is not very even-temperd (he gets that from his daddy....shhhh). He gets soooo mad when he messes something up--(while cooking or anything else for that matter). He is OCD in a way. He likes things the way he likes them...I wonder where he gets that part from...HA!

So, get ready boys and girls...we're going to have some FUN in the kitchen...


And, then... you can share it with your kids.


Pictures will be included, of course. :)

Soccer Update: Canyon's first game is Saturday--this should be INTERESTING to say the least. He's been practicing and isn't half bad. I have no clue how he will react to the actual game, but...I just hope he has fun. That is all I am really worried about.

There are some fun and exciting things in the works...stay tuned.

Four Year Old Favorites....

I like to keep up (age by age) with what Canyon was/is into...

He's four...amost four and a half...and he loves SO many different things.....BUT, here are a few things that my big boy couldn't live without.

Top to Bottom:



Capri Suns: Or "Pri-Suns" as we call them. My fridge stays stocked with these... :)

Llama Llama Red Pajama: Our FAVORITE bedtime story. We read it at least twice every night. :)

Baseball: My child LOVES baseball.

Go Fish: Or "GOLD FISH" as we call it. (You will learn we have crazy nicknames for EVERYTHING)

Canyon just recently learned how to play this...it's a daily thing...

Spongebob Go-Gurt: Lord, help me if they ever stop making SPONGEBOB Go-Gurt. It's the only "kind" he will eat. I tried the Cars Go-Gurt once (same flavor) and he wasn't having it.

And, last but not least......Jake and the Neverland Pirates: L-O-V-E

I'm working on putting together collages (year by year) of what Canyon was into at that specific age. It will be fun to look back on one day. :)