We're Going to a Cookie Party...

Hi Guys! :)
How's your Sunday? I've spent mine cooking and cleaning and eating. :D Perfectly acceptable Sunday behavior - no?
Here's a quick recap from last night...

Lastnight's Dinner...
Jason made a really good gnocchi dish with onions, garlic, artichoke hearts and sundried tomatoes in a red pasta sauce. He swears he never wants to be a 'Professional Chef' again, but he does seem to enjoy himself when he's cooking at home (on the rare occasion that he does it).

I made a really yummy salad using the rest of the artichoke hearts and sundried tomatoes with sping mix, pine nuts, snap peas, shredded carrots and a poppyseed vinaigrette. It too was quite tastey if I do say so myself even if I'm NOT a chef.

  

Then Jason, Linsey, Regan and I curled up together on the couch with a few oatmeal raisin cookies and watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. It is one of my ALL time favorite Christmas movies and we ahd never watched it with Linsey, but she's been begging for a few years now so we finally gave in and shared our movie with her. She laughed quite a bit, but didn't seem to find it as hysterical as Jason and I still do. Oh well - it was still a good night with the fam.

This morning we all got up and prepared for the day in our own ways. Jason made a pot of coffee. I got ready and started making breakfast and the girls - well - the girls did their own thing.

Regan...

Linsey...

I love my girls, but sometimes they are as different as night and day.

I made a big batch of pumpkin oatmeal pancakes this morning. I did it quite different than the last time. Here's the recipe I came up with...

1 c flour

1 c old fashioned oats

2 T sugar

2 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

1 t salt

1 1/2 c organic vanilla soymilk

2 t vanilla

1/4 c mashed (very ripe) banana

Ener G Egg Replacer (make equivalent to 2 eggs)

3/4 can of organic pumpkin

Mix all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and ladle out one scoop per pancake. They were dense and cake like with a hint of sweetness. I topped mine with a small drizzle of sunflower butter, 1/2 banana sliced and a drizzle of maple syrup. YUM-O!! We also made Morningstar Farms maple flavored veggie sausages because we are addicts! However, that will be changing so come back tonight for the Sunday Segment to find out why!! Teaser - I know...

After breakfast Jason took a shower with Regan (trust me - it sounds crazy, but works so much faster when your 2 year old is TERRIFIED of the bath tub :( ) Then he, Linsey and Regan left to do their Christmas shopping for someone - :) while I cleaned house. I can get twice as much done in half the time if I'ma ll alone. I managed to get the living room, dining room, Regan's room and our room COMPLETELY cleaned from top to bottom while they were gone. When they got back they brought a sleeping 2 year old and Jimmy John's so I called it quits with the cleaning to sit and have lunch with Jasona nd Linsey. They got me the vegetarian (duh!) and skinny chips and I must have been hungrier than I thought because I ate the whole sandwich and about half the chips.

This doesn't really apply to Jimmy John's as a quote, but it brings a good point and reason to my next paragraph. This is something we should all be questioning and I will be tonight. Trust me...

"Our kids have ten minutes to eat tator tots and chicken nuggets. We're training the next gen of fast food consumers."- Michael Pollan

Jason told me that he got into an arguement with the sandwich maker because Linsey is also a vegetarian, but there is no vegetarian sandwich for kids except the Slim Cheese which is usually what she gets, but Jason asked if they would add a little bit of lettuce for her because she loves lettuce and they told him no. He started arguing with the guy because he gave the woman in front of him a free cup to get soda. It seems very odd to me that they will give away the cup AND the soda for free, but not a tiny bit of lettuce on a cheese sandwich for a kid. Are we purposely trying from every angle possible to make our country fat?? I'm just totally confused and disgusted and bothered and PISSED OFF about what is happening in our world today. My Sunday Segment is going to cover this in detail because right now I have to go take a shower and get all prettied up because we're going to the annual 'Holahan Cookie Party' at 3:00!!