Friday Favorites

Happy Friday!  Unfortunately, this week I wasn’t feeling the greatest and even had to miss a day of work.  I’m feeling much better today and am looking forward to a relaxing weekend!  Here are some of the highlights of this week, which seem to be almost all food related!

1.  Outlet Shopping – Sunday we took a trip up to Woodbury Common outlets to do a little shopping.  We hadn’t been in awhile and they have and are in the midst of renovating the place.  We had never been to the Calvin Klein clearance store before, but everything in the store was 75% off!  The Weekend Chef scored a suit for $140!!  And I was happy to find that a Chipotle was now in the new food court!  While shopping is not the kids’ favorite, they did enjoy a Pinkberry fro yo treat!

2. Our daughter’s gym show – Each year, the kids’ school has a 3rd and 4th grade gym show.  For the past two months she’s been dropped off at school an hour early, two day a week,  to practice for this show.  Wednesday night we got to see her perform in the dance production and the circus arts production.  She had so much fun and we are so proud of her!

3.  Celebrating the Weekend Chef’s birthday – My amazing husband turned 39 Thursday!  We celebrated with a steak dinner and at his request, homemade chocolate chip cookie bars.

4.  Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week – This Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala Stew from Cooking and Beer.  I am always on the lookout for new slow cooker recipes and I love chicken marsala!

5. Pizza Themed Supper Club – Saturday night we had our monthly supper club.  This month’s theme was pizza.  One of our members made homemade pizza dough for everyone and we all assembled and cooked our pizzas at the hosting couple’s house.  I made a Kimchi Chicken Bulgogi pizza and the Weekend Chef made a New Haven Style white pizza with clams and garlic.  That night we also had BBQ Chicken Pizza, Deep Dish Taco pizza, a  pizza with Butternut Squash, Brussels Sprouts, Pomegranate and Bacon, as well as a chocolate dessert pizza made with a chocolate dough! Needless to say, even eating only half slices, I was super stuffed by the end of the night.  But so worth it!

ICYMI this week on the blog:
Monday  we posted our weekly meal plan.
Tuesday we posted How to Teach Kids About Money?
Wednesday we posted an update on the Weekend Chef’s diet.
Thursday we posted a review of some children’s Thanksgiving picture books.

We are linking up with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea from Momfessionals.  Have a great weekend!

So glad Friday is here!  This week has been a really long week.  This weekend is filled with the last soccer game of the season, a girl scout overnight for my daughter, my weekly volunteer gig at the food pantry, tae kwon do for the Weekend Chef, pizza-themed Supper Club and hopefully some relaxing time on Sunday!  Here are some favorites from this week:

1.  Veteran’s Day:  Both our children are in scouting and they both marched and attended our local Veteran’s Day parade.  My son’s cub scout pack placed flags on all the grave stones of veterans who are buried at a local cemetery.  My son made me super proud when I asked him if he wanted to help volunteer, which meant getting up early and as it turned out, doing this in the rain, and he said yes!

2. Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week:  This Thai Drunken Zucchini Noodles with Spicy Honey Chicken from How Sweet It Is.  Since I don’t have a spiralizer, and I like my carbs, I think I’m going to try this with pasta.

3.  The monthly Show Us Your Books Link-Up with Steph and Jana.  Have you noticed that I like to read?!!  I love getting recommendations on good books.  If you are looking for your next good read, check out some of the posts.  You’ll get ratings, reviews and recommendations from other bloggers!

4. Audio book:  Since I’ve started commuting for work, I’ve gotten back into listening to audio books.  After hearing good things about Some Girls Are from a previous Show Us Your Book link-up, I borrowed it on audio from the library.  This YA title of this book could be finished with Some Girls Are REALLY MEAN.  This book was really good in a sad and depressing kind of way.  I think hearing it narrated also added to really feeling for Regina.  If you have a daughter, this book will probably make you want to lock her in her room and never let her go to high school!

5.  Awesome progress reports – Last night I had parent-teacher conferences for my kids.  They both got great progress reports and are doing well in school.  I came home and told them that they were academic rock stars!  With the behavior chart that I talked about in a previous Friday Favorites post, my son has been doing much better with his talking during class.  I think this weekend we will have to fit in a surprise special treat for them working so hard!

ICYMI, this week on the blog:

Monday we shared our weekly meal plan.
Tuesday I posted my October reads.
Wednesday the Weekend Chef reviewed a movie for Veteran’s Day.

I’m linking up with Tif from Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea from Momfessionals!  Have a great weekend!

Yes, it’s that time again!  Friday! We had a really fun Halloween last weekend.  Our daughter went with a friend trick-or-treating and then to the party her friend’s family was hosting.  We ended up having a couple of our son’s friends and their families over for some pizza and trick-or-treating.  We first went trick-or-treating at a nearby townhouse community.  We ended up enjoying this a lot.  The community was really big so there was lots of trick-or-treating.  It was nice that  the houses were close to one another and the kids appreciated less walking!  When we got back to our house we then walked the boys around our neighborhood until they wanted to go home because their feet were so tired!  We spent Sunday at a 1st birthday party. This week the kids had off Tuesday for Election Day and today for parent-teacher conferences.    Otherwise, it’s been a pretty uneventful week.  Here are some of our favorites:

1. A day off or two for the Weekend Chef – I had a staff development day for work, so the Weekend Chef stayed home Tuesday with the kids.  It’s amazing how much stuff he can get done!  He raked and bagged all the leaves in the front yard.  Let me tell you there were a TON of leaves too!  He also prepped the slow cooker for dinner and took one of the cars in for an oil change.  Today, he’s home again with the kids and he’s tackling the backyard!

2.  Netflix – The one thing I really miss about not having cable television is reality TV.  I’m talking Real Housewives and The Bachelor/Bachelorette.  I was really in the mood for some reality TV and found The Great Food Truck Race collection on Netflix.  It’s not exactly what I was looking for, but I watched the first season of the collection (really Season 3 of the show) this week.  The Weekend Chef watched a few episodes with me.  Yes, you can tell it’s staged, but I like Tyler Florence and I didn’t have many options, so,  it had to do.   And now, it’s really gotten me in the mood for some food truck food!

3. Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week: These Halloween Stash Devil Food Cookies from Frugal Foodie Mama.  I already have the ingredients and recipe for this Halloween Candy Apple Crisp from Melanie Makes…..but I think we have more candy we need to use up.  So, these cookies may also be making an appearance in our kitchen soon!

4.  Children’s book:  The Bear Report by Thyra Heder.  We read this before bedtime this past week and both the kids and I enjoyed it a lot!  It’s a fun, imaginative book about a girl who doesn’t want to write her report on polar bears.  She ends up learning about the animal, right from the source, as she’s taken on an educational adventure in the Arctic.

5. Not Your Father’s Root Beer – I’m not sure that this is a favorite, but I’m glad I FINALLY got to try it this weekend!  It wasn’t bad, but not my fave.  I’ll stick to my hard ciders.  I’ve heard that this tastes good in a root beer float though, so I may have to try that!

ICYMI:
Monday we posted our weekly meal plan.
Wednesday we joined Anne and Jenna’s monthly Currently link-up.
Thursday we reviewed snack subscription box MunchPak.

Linking up with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea from Momfessionals!  Have a great weekend!

Happy Friday before Halloween! Let’s get right to some of this past week’s favorites!

1. Trunk or Treat – This was the first year that we took the kids to our local Trunk or Treat event.  It’s sponsored by our school education foundation so the money being raised is for a good cause – the students in our school district!  Some families go all out in decorating their cars.  As my daughter noted, “Mom, you would never do that.”  She knows me too well!  After trunk or treating (my son is Rocket Raccoon from Guardians of the Galaxy and my daughter is a vampire princess) we now have the above pictured plastic pumpkin filled with candy and the kids haven’t even gone trick-or-treating yet.  I have a bunch of recipes saved for using up leftover Halloween candy.  I may need to break some of those out in the next couple of weeks!

2.  Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week – These Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Pancakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting from Closet Cooking.  Can I even make this for “breakfast for dinner” or does this fall into the dessert category?!!

3.  Turkey Hill Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream – And speaking of pumpkin, the kids and I have been enjoying this ice cream all week.  It’s pumpkin ice cream with a cinnamon graham cracker swirl.   Of course, the graham cracker swirl is my favorite part.  After this ice cream is gone….no more.  I need to take an ice cream hiatus!  The Weekend Chef is being so good with his diet and I really need get more serious about eating healthier.

4.  Free Fresh Fruit and Veggies – Every Saturday morning I volunteer at a local food pantry.  Since my son’s soccer season started, I can only usually stay for an hour, in which I help set up by bagging produce and bread deliveries that arrive.  This past Saturday, the Weekend Chef’s Tae Kwon Do class was cancelled, so I was able to volunteer at the pantry for the full shift.  After all the families have shopped and we’ve cleaned up, any leftover produce is offered to the volunteers.  Most of the produce is locally grown.  This past week I brought home a bag of pears, two of which are pictured above, as well as a bag of mixed purple and orange carrots and two bags of swiss chard.  While I’m not a pear eater, the Weekend Chef and my son enjoyed them, noting how ripe and juicy they were.  As the growing season is pretty much ending now, there won’t be much fresh produce for the next couple of months.  As the Weekend Chef noted, my volunteer time at the pantry is paid for with fruit and vegetables!

5.  Behavior Modification Charts – Once a special education teacher, always a special education teacher!  When we got an e-mail from our son’s teacher that he was being disruptive and talkative, I immediately pulled out a behavior modification chart.  The rule is that if he does not come home with a smiley face each day we go all out on consequences – no treats, electronics, playdates, etc.  If you noticed, there is only one so-so face (where he just lost his treat for the night) and the rest are smiley faces.  When I e-mailed the teacher about using the chart she was totally on board with it and happy that we were being so supportive.  If all goes well and he comes home today with a smiley face we are hoping to phase out the chart for next week and he will get a special treat over the weekend for having five smiley faces in a row.  While you don’t want a child to be dependent on a behavior modification chart, it’s a great visual reinforcer.  I’m just happy that it’s worked and that his behavior is so much better!

ICYMI here on the blog:
Monday I posted our weekly meal plan.
Tuesday I posted a link-up that I was guest co-hosting for the month of October.
Wednesday the Weekend Chef reviewed Ernest Cline’s newest book Armada.
Thursday I posted about my first experience with Jamberry nail wraps.

Have a great weekend and have a Happy Halloween!  If you are trick-or-treating with kids, stay safe and enjoy the treats!

Linking up with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea @ Momfessionals!

Happy Friday!  This felt like one of the busiest weeks ever.  Add in several schedule changes for the kids and a last minute meeting and my organized, structured self was not happy!  Oh, and who doesn’t like to start off their day with their front door latch breaking and getting locked out of their house after putting the kids on the bus?!  Yeah, that was me Wednesday morning.  Luckily, the Weekend Chef was able to call a locksmith and I didn’t have to be at work until 1 PM.  Nothing like helping the locksmith break into your own house!  Fun times, people, fun times!  But, it’s Friday and everything’s better on Friday.  It looks like this weekend will have some relaxing time (after getting a new door latch) – score!  Here are some favorites from this past week:

1. Last weekend the Weekend Chef and my son went to a Cub Scout event and then camped outside overnight.  Yes, last weekend, when it was like 30 something degrees here in New York.  While they were roughing it in the cold, my daughter and I spent the afternoon shopping at the mall.  After perusing Claire’s and Justice and actually making purchases at Gap and Gap Kids, she of course requested a pretzel and lemonade snack at Auntie Anne’s.  Later that night we ordered dinner at Panera Bread and brought it home and watched episodes of Girl Meets World.  We had a great Mom-Daughter Day.

2.  Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week:  This Skillet Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Grits Breakfast Bake from Peas & Crayons.   I’m not Southern, but sometimes think I was in another life.  I love Southern food!  Grits, collard greens, biscuits and gravy…..yum!

3.  Reading:  Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling.  I may have to read her first book Is Everyone Hanging Out With Me? again, because my goodreads rating says I only gave it 2 stars!  I am loving Why Not Me?  I am a fan of The Mindy Project and as I’m reading this book, I am imaging Mindy’s voice reading it.  Funny and entertaining, I should have this book finished this weekend.

4.  Cold Bibimbap from HMart – My new job is right near a Trader Joe’s and an HMart (a very large Asian supermarket that has a food court as well).  I am in trouble!  Or as the Weekend Chef notes, “there goes your paycheck!”  The other day I went to HMart and got their cold bibimbap for lunch.  Bibimbap is a traditional Korean dish meaning “mixed rice.”  As seen above the dish includes vegetables, a fried egg, usually meat and rice served with a chili pepper paste over rice.  You mix it all together and it’s delicious!  Normally, it’s served hot in a stone bowl (which is how I prefer it).  However, HMart only serves a cold variation.  Either way, this was a super tasty lunch!

5.  The Mets – I grew up as a Yankees fan.  But, thanks to my brother-in-law, the past couple of years our family has had the pleasure of an annual trip to Citi Field to watch the Mets play, all from the comfort of a suite.  Regardless, the Mets have just won their first pennant since 2000 and will be playing in the World Series. To say that New York fans are a bit excited is an understatement!  Unfortunately, we don’t have cable television, so we will have to figure out a way to watch some of the World Series.

ICYMI, here’s what was on the blog this week:

Our weekly meal plan
Tuesday link-up that I’m guest hosting this month (and it’s not too late to add your post!)
The Weekend Chef’s book review of Why We Get Fat

Linking up with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea @ Momfessionals.  Have a great weekend!

I know I’m probably saying this every Friday, but where did the week go?!  Last weekend flew by with my sister and her family visiting from out of state.  Having Monday off seemed to throw off our entire schedule.  But here we are again, having survived another week!  Some favorites of this past week:

1. Apple picking – Even though my son went apple picking yesterday on a class trip, we still decided to make a quick trip to a local orchard.  We went while my sister was up visiting and our kids loved picking apples with their cousins.  And of course it wouldn’t be apple picking without stopping for some cider doughnuts and apple cider.  It was ridiculously crowded and we waited in line for over an hour to get doughnuts.  They were good, but they weren’t even hot!  Definitely not worth the long wait with antsy children.  We have been enjoying eating the apples, which are almost all gone.  I’m hoping to bake some type of treat with a few of the ones we have left.

2.  Bike Riding – Our son, who has been fighting learning to ride his bike for what feels like forever, finally learned to ride his bike!  We all had off from school and work on Columbus Day, so the Weekend Chef had wanted the family to go on a hike.  The kids were not into it at all and our daughter suggested instead that they go bike riding (since the Weekend Chef and I don’t own bikes!).   We have a local park near us that has a track that is perfect for bike riding.  After a couple of shaky laps, our son finally got the hang of it and was riding like a pro!  It was very exciting.  And of course, the boy who complained about not wanting to go bike riding didn’t want to leave to go home!

3. Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week – This Buffalo Chicken Shepherd’s Pie from Cupcakes and Kale Chips.  I think I’ve mentioned a few times that I love all things buffalo chicken.  This sounds like a perfect cold weather comfort dinner that will be making it onto our weekly meal plan soon.

4.   Netflix – The Weekend Chef and I have just finished watching the last episode of The Killing on Netflix this past week.  I know I’ve mentioned in previous Friday Favorites that we’ve enjoyed this show.  This show kept us up much later than I had planned on several nights because an episode would end on a big cliffhanger and we’d have to start the next episode to see what happened next.

5. NYCC – a.k.a. New York Comic Con.  My brother-in-law’s company is in the process of creating two comic book series.  He was in town with my sister and her kids since he had a booth at Comic Con to promote the comic books.  He had an extra ticket, so the Weekend Chef spent pretty much all day Saturday in the city, helping at the booth.  He did get a chance to walk around a bit and saw lots of people in costume and displays like the ones pictured above.

I’m linking up with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea @ Momfessionals!  Have a great weekend!

Happy Friday!  Hope everyone a great week!  We are looking forward to a three day weekend filled with family fun and relaxation!  This week I’m sharing some of my favorite blog posts that I’ve found this week. Hope you enjoy!

1. I found Cait’s post How I Will Improve Goodreads When I Rule The World via Erin’s Blogger Love vol. 2 post.  If you use Goodreads, you have to read Cait’s post.  She had so many improvements that were spot on!

2. I have bookmarked The Nectar Collective’s post on 7 Great Alternatives to Photoshop to Create Graphics for Your Blog.  Blogging is a hobby that the Weekend Chef and I started as something fun that we could do together.  It’s not paying the bills and I’m not ready to invest a lot of money in it at this time.  I know I need to step up my photography and graphics skills for the blog, however I don’t have a lot of time to learn Photoshop, nor do I want to pay a monthly fee for a program…..yet.  This post offered several alternatives that I have to check out.

3.  I found Cristina’s post 5 Things Beginner Food Photographers Should Know pretty informative as well.  At this point in my blogging career, I find any photography tips helpful!

4.  I always enjoy Megan’s posts.  Her most recent post How do I measure success? describes her goal to get in shape and lose weight, imparted with her usual humor and realism.

5.  Finally, Lisa recently posted Asian cartoon characters I like and don’t like.  Lisa’s children are a bit younger than mine, so I was unfamiliar with many of the characters that she wrote about.   I was impressed with the number of shows that she identified that have Asian characters in them.  I am Korean and I think it’s important that my children  see characters in the media (television, movies, games, etc.) that they can identify with, appearance-wise.  Her post got me thinking about shows targeted toward elementary children…..and I’m not sure that I can identify many Asians being represented.

***NY Foodie Family finally has a Facebook page!  Stop by and check us out!

ICYMI on the blog this week:

Monday I shared our weekly meal plan.
Tuesday I shared a recipe for Feta Poblano Corn Muffins.
Wednesday I posted October Currently.
And Thursday I shared How I Use My Bullet Journal.

I am linking up again with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ the Barre and Andrea @ Momfessionals.  Have a great weekend!

Happy October!  It is really starting to feel like fall around here with cooler temperatures.  We also finally got some much needed rain this week and are expecting some more this weekend.  Highlights of this weekend include our daughter going to a sleepover, our son going to a birthday party,  and the Weekend Chef and I going to our monthly supper club.  Here are some highlights of this past week:

1. Chaperoning a field trip:  I chaperoned my daughter’s first class trip this year to Constitution Marsh.  It’s an Audubon Center and Sanctuary right on the Hudson River where we did a water study, went on a hike through the marsh and went on a bird watching hike.  It was a fun and educational day!

2.  Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week:  Blackened Broccoli Pasta with Charred Lemon and Goat Cheese because goat cheese, of course!

3. Piano Lessons – Not for me.  Been there, done that!  But my daughter just started piano lessons and is off to an amazing start!  We inherited our piano from my parents when they sold their house.  She is playing on the same piano that me and my siblings grew up playing on.  She’s flying through the first set of books and loves playing!

4.  Watching this week:  I borrowed Season One of The Affair from the library and have been binge-watching it this week.  It’s not available on Netflix and I was curious after hearing that it had won the Golden Globe Award for Best Drama Television Series.  Ruth Wilson also won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Television Series.   I’m almost through the first season and let me warn you this is a dark and depressing show!  Yes, it’s about an affair, told from the two perspectives of the main characters, Noah and Alison.  Have you seen this show?

5. A Giveaway!  – Angie from My So Called Chaos is featuring me tomorrow on her Saturday Spotlight!  Stop by her blog tomorrow to find out a little bit more about me and enter to win a $25 Target gift card!

Not so Favorite:
I’ve only had Chick-fil-A twice now, the latest being on our recent road trip to Disney World.  They have great chicken sandwiches.  I can’t complain about that.  However, I just saw this article on Yahoo! Finance via Business Insider regarding a promotion they are running.  In honor of the opening of their new Manhattan location, the chain is giving away free Chick-fil-A for a year to 100 people.  The catch?  Selected “winners” have to sleep on the selected NYC street corner and have a valid government-issued ID.  I agree with some of the critics, NYC has enough homeless people involuntarily sleeping on the city streets.  How about giving some free food to them?!

ICYMI:  This week on the blog-

Our Weekly Meal Plan for some meal plan inspiration!
I’m guest co-hosting this month at the weekly Turn It Up Tuesday at Epic Mommy Adventures.  Stop by every Tuesday and link-up your posts!
I also posted this Ravioli with Lemon Butter Basil Sauce.  It’s a quick, easy weeknight meal!
The Weekend Chef posted some of his September monthly favorites.
I also posted our Children’s Monthly Entertainment Review.  Check it out to see what our kids were watching, playing and reading this month!

Have a great weekend!  Linking up with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea @ Momfessionals.

It’s officially Fall!  I am excited for all things apple and pumpkin, the leaves changing colors and wearing sweaters and boots!   I’ve already started sleeping with my down comforter since it has been getting pretty chilly at night.  This week wasn’t too exciting.  Our son had his late seven year-old well visit.  Although his birthday is in July, his well visit gets pushed back later and later (darn you health insurance for making us wait a year and a day!  I was late once in scheduling and now pay for it yearly!).  He checked out healthy and the kids got their flu shots.  The kids had no school Wednesday for Yom Kippur.  They relaxed and played, which they don’t get a chance to do a lot now that school and activities have started! We are slowly settling into our new, very busy, weekday school  routine. Here are some of this week’s favorites:

1. Fall Cleaning –  Our town hosts an annual Community Swap.  You can bring any “stuff” you don’t want and drop it off so others can take it and you can peruse the tables and take anything that you’d like, all free of charge.  It’s a great way to give a good home to all the books, toys and knickknacks that we don’t want in our house anymore but are in great condition for someone else to enjoy.  Pictured above is a small pile of the stuff that we are bringing tomorrow to the swap.  It was nice to start our fall cleaning by getting rid of stuff!

2.   Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week:  These Mushroom and Goat Cheese Ravioli have two of my favorite foods right there in the title…..goat cheese and mushrooms.  Unfortunately, these are not something the kids will enjoy eating since they both dislike mushrooms A LOT!

3.   Netflix – How To Get Away With Murder.  I was watching this show online for awhile when it first debuted, but then got caught up in other things and forgot about it.  I had just gotten Season 1 on DVD from the library last weekend when I saw it was finally on Netflix!  I have since binge-watched the last eight episodes of this show this past week.  The season 2 premiere just aired last night.  I’m going to try to keep up with this one online.  I was happy to hear that Viola Davis won the 2015 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role in this show.

4. Winner, winner! – I found out that I was the winner of an Avon Whipped Pumpkin scented candle from Charmed Crown Blog! I’ve never tried Avon’s candles and a pumpkin scented candle for fall is perfect!

5.   The Slow Cooker – This week I made three slow cooker recipes!  I plan to make a whole lot more, seeing how busy our weekday schedule is looking.  Check out Monday’s weekly meal plan posts for the recipes and reviews!  And if you have any slow cooker recipe recommendations, please send them my way!

ICYMI – Posts from this past week:
Weekly Meal Plan
Hoisin Burgers with Peanut Slaw
Road Food Down South
All the Podcasts

Linking up with Tif @ Bright on a Budget, Amanda from Meet @ The Barre and Andrea @ Momfessionals!  Have a great weekend!

Happy Friday!  The kids had Monday and Tuesday off for Rosh Hashanah and my birthday was Wednesday!  With the days off, the kids’ schedules got way off-track.  Bed time seemed to get later and later, and getting up for school was very hard for them on Wednesday!  My birthday was Wednesday, but we celebrated it Sunday, because doesn’t everyone enjoy spending their birthday at back-to-school night?!!!  The strawberry shortcake that my husband brought home from Junior’s that night might have helped make by day!  Here are some of our favorites this week:

1.   Panera Ancient Grain, Arugula Chicken Salad – My favorite salad at Panera is the Chicken Cobb Avocado.  I decided to try the new Ancient Grain, Arugula Chicken Salad and I was pleasantly surprised!  I loved the mix of the spiciness  of the arugula, the sweetness from the grapes and apples and the slight chew of the ancient grain blend that includes freekeh, farro and black barley.  I ordered a half-size and with the bread, it was filling enough for me for lunch.  However, I wouldn’t mind ordering the full-size salad next time!  This may be replacing my Chicken Cobb Avocado for awhile!

2.  Favorite bookmarked recipe of the week:  Now that my mind’s on fall and all things apple and pumpkin, these Pumpkin Snickerdoodles with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing have been bookmarked!

3.  Watermelon Ale – Last Sunday night we went out to dinner at Savannah’s, a local southern-style restaurant.  The Weekend Chef and I split Shrimp and Parmesan Grits (which were amazing!) and Chicken and Greens (a huge fried chicken cutlet, topped with collard greens, cheese and a mustard cream sauce, served with red beans and rice).  The kids split an adult entrée of Pulled Pork over Texas Toast with Mac and Cheese.  While I had a sweet tea, the Weekend Chef had this Watermelon Ale from Thomas Hooker Brewery.  I’m not a big beer drinker.  However, this ale was really good! It was light and refreshing and the watermelon flavor was perfectly subtle. This must have been some of the last of this summer-only seasonal brew. The brewery website says it’s only available from April to August. Adios, summer.

4. Family Bowling Night –  We celebrated my birthday Sunday evening with dinner at Savannah’s, which I mentioned above and then went bowling.  I can’t remember the last time that we went bowling together as a family.  One of our local bowling alleys has 1/2 price games Sunday evenings from 6 PM – closing.  We played two games each for a total of $20!  Can’t beat that and it was so much fun!  The big winner of the night was our son with a high score of 124 (with the bumpers!).

5.  Netflix – I know season 3 of the Blacklist will be airing October 1, but season 2 just came to Netflix.  This week the Weekend Chef and I have started watching the second season.

Linking up with Amanda from Meet @ the Barre, Tif @ Bright on a Budget and Andrea from Momfessionals.  Have a great weekend!