Tofu Tacos!

I'm really not even sure if anyone reads this blog! If nothing else, this will be a great keepsake for my family to look back on for years to come. I love writing about the things that are important to me.

One of my favorite things to do right now is cook healthy meals for my husband and I. We are trying very hard to build healthy habits while our daughter is still young so that she can follow our example. We have been eating mostly whole grains and lots of vegetarian meals. We made tofu tacos last night and they were a huge hit. I decided to post the tofu recipe because it turned out amazing!

Tofu Tacos
Approx cooking time 30 min
Yields about 4 servings (8 tacos)
Ingredients:1 package extra firm tofuapprox 1/4 C taco seasoning
1/4 C olive oil

Directions:
1. Remove tofu from package and put it between paper towels for about 15 minutes. Put a few books on top of tofu to help get water out. The tofu needs to be as firm as possible. The paper towels act as a sponge to absorb water.
2.Preheat skillet to medium heat. Add oil and let it heat up for about 10 minutes.
3. Slice the tofu in half length wise and then slice pieces paper thin. This is how I sliced mine:
4. Add tofu to skillet and sprinkle taco seasoning. Let it brown for about fifteen minutes before turning. The trick is to get it as crispy as possible. It takes about 30 minutes but the end result is worth it!


We decided to use crunchy tacos but I think soft would also work. We had a side of refried beans and guacamole which made the meal delicious. The recipe calls for a lot of oil, but you have to remember, olive oil is an excellent source of monounsaturated fats as well as the guacamole. Healthy eating does not have to always mean low fat. Eating the right kinds of fats is the most important thing. For tofu skeptics out there, give this recipe a try. You might just become a tofu fanatic like us! :)

Our Little Cupcake

I am truly amazed at how fast a year goes by. A year ago I was at work when I started feeling very hot and shaky. I was 36 weeks pregnant and convinced that I was experiencing Braxton Hicks Contractions. My husband and I went to the hospital as a precaution. Much to my surprise, I was 9 centimeters dilated and ready to have our little girl! Now here we are celebrating our little girl's first birthday. This is not only a celebration for her, it is just as much a celebration for my husband and I. I am celebrating the strength that I had on the day of her delivery. I am celebrating this precious life that I helped to create. I am celebrating the joy of motherhood. I am celebrating my gratitude to God for allowing me to be the mother of Sophia Therese. Words that are typically used to describe motherhood are: joyous, amazing, exhausting etc... but I am starting to view it as such an honor. I am honored to be the mother of such an amazing little girl.

We celebrated Sophia's first birthday this past Saturday and it was hit! We were insistent on having the party at our new home and I think it worked out very well despite our house being teeny tiny. We have a park across the street which turned out to be very convenient! We decided to grill burgers at the park and then invited everyone inside for cupcakes and presents. The theme was "Cupcake". I knew that I wanted to do something creative for her party that wasn't a popular theme and cupcake seemed very fitting. I worked very hard at making her birthday invitations and decorations. My favorite decoration was the pennant banner that I made for her. I also made a banner with pictures of her from each month so that everyone could see just how much she has grown. I made a onesie with a big 1 on it for her birthday outfit and she wore a tutu. It was adorable. Her party only lasted a few hours, but the small details are what helped to make it special.

I am a wonder I am a warrior I am a woman!

My husband James has been offered a job for the summer as a keyboard player with a band at our church. This involves him traveling all summer and leaving me to take care of the house and our [soon to be] one year old daughter. The band left last Monday for their first tour and they will arrive home on Thursday for a total of 10 days. I have found so much strength in this past week. I am amazed at how much God has taken care of me. I am so dependent on James and I was truly fearful of how I would react when he left. I hate sleeping alone and I am such a worry wart (thanks Mom! :) I thought for sure that I would be sick with worry all week when in fact it has been the opposite. I have kept myself so busy between working on projects around the house and hanging out with friends I hadn't seen since before Christmas! In this past week me and Sophia have enjoyed a great BBQ with my mom's family, had our first experience at The Little Gym, made tofu tacos with Kelly, visited with Amanda, walked the mall with our cousin, tried wearing pigtails for the first time, made the cutest birthday invitations, and almost mastered pulling up to a standing position. I definitely learned a few things about myself this week:

1. I genuinely love to cook which I proved by making myself dinner most of the time this week.
I made veggie burgers with homemade sweet potato fries, spinach ravioli, and I even grilled a single chicken breast for myself!
2. I am fully capable of making myself happy if I really put in the effort.
3. I have more friends than I realized if I just make some phone calls.
4. I depend on Sophia just as much as she depends on me.

James comes home tomorrow and I am so excited to see him, but I also know that when he leaves again, I will be okay. I found myself repeating this phrase all week. I think it was God's way of giving me strength: I am a wonder, I am a warrior, I am a woman!

Deceptively Delicious

Seeing as how I am studying to be a registered dietitian, I try very hard to cook healthy meals for my family. Having a small iceberg salad with dinner is not my idea of healthy. Since getting married and having a baby, I understand the importance of incorporating nutritionally dense foods into our everyday meals. I am known for doing things like "hiding" spinach in pasta sauces and whole wheat flour in cookies. I have almost mastered how to make things healthier without my husband noticing. I have tried so hard to encourage my husband to eat sweet potatoes. They are an absolute powerhouse of vitamins and nutrients. I have made sweet potatoes on several occasions but my husband always pushes them away and says they are too sweet! Last night for dinner, the light bulb finally went off. Just because sweet potatoes are naturally sweet, does not mean I can't add a little spice to them. I made sweet potatoes fries dusted with cajun spices last night and they were a huge success! They were so easy too. I julienned the potatoes fairly thin and then brushed them with olive oil and sprinkled sea salt and cajun spices. I cooked them at 425 degrees for about 25 minutes. This is a great way to encourage healthy eating to anyone who is picky. I can't wait until Sophia is old enough for sweet potato fries. Until then, her sweet potatoes go in the blender before they go in her tummy. :)

Mishchievous Scooter

Being a mother has proven to be the most rewarding and nerve racking thing of my life thus far! Having a little 11 month old scooter presents many challenges during my day. I used to be afraid to take a shower because I didn't want to hear Sophia cry, now I am afraid to take a shower because I don't want her to choke on a piece of plastic that the vacuum missed. Leaving her alone for two minutes while I go do laundry is just not an option right now. I can put 5 toys in front of her and she will somehow find something off limits to put in her mouth instead! This evening, I put her on the floor with her beloved piano, but she was much more interested in the wrapping paper under the staircase. She managed to scoot across the living room, under the staircase and unravel half of the wrapping paper. I am finding that the older she gets, the more paranoid I become about her safety. Every time I leave her with someone, I can't help but be afraid for her safety. I know she is safe with her dad because I am constantly reminding him of just how careful he needs to be. I love him for putting up with me :) Am I crazy or are all mothers overly controlling when it comes to the well being of their children? I fear that this control will only get worse as she gets older. Who will be allowed to drive her places, how often will she be allowed to have junk food, what will she wear, what will her bed time be, who will her friends be? These are all things that I want to control, but I don't know that I can. Like I said before, being a mother is the most rewarding and nerve racking this of my life thus far!

Easter

Being Catholic, I absolutely love Easter. I think I love it more than Christmas which is hard for most people to believe. Easter is so joyous. I love the time leading up to Easter. Lent is such a wonderful opportunity for us to renew our faith in God and teach ourselves a little self discipline. This lent rather than giving up something, I just worked on being a better Catholic in small ways.


Easter was quite an event for us this year. We started our morning by meeting my in laws for breakfast, followed by a 2nd breakfast at my Grandma's house which included the traditional Polish breakfast. We have eggs, polish sausage, fruit, and these amazing pastries that we order from Chicago. They are amazing! All of the food is taken to the church to be blessed before we eat it which really makes it a special tradition. After breakfast we proceeded on to my in laws house for lunch. James' cousin has a daughter Sophia's age and it was so fun to watch the two of them interacting! Our last and final meal of the day was a delicious prime rib dinner with my family. I am very grateful to have such a wonderful family here in town, but I don't want to eat four meals in one day for a very long time!

Spring

I absolutely love spring time. The weather here in Arizona could not be more perfect. This weather is what keeps me living here. I love going for walks in the Spring and smelling the overwhelming aroma of the orange blossoms and feeling the cool air on my skin. I associate spring with all things good. I met and fell in love with my husband James in the Spring and we got married in late Spring of 2008. Now here we are two years into our marriage with a beautiful 9 month old daughter Sophia, and we are buying our first home! Only good things can come from Spring.