we had a great time at my cousins wedding and reception on the newport harbor!
of course we ate way too much vietnamese food, as evidence from all the empty plates.
i could seriously eat bánh bèo all day. the picture below is the best one i could find on the internet .. of course i inhaled mine before i got a chance to take a picture]. it’s just about my favorite dish in the world. it is little steamed rice cakes with shrimp, scallions, and fried pork skins on top. with a whole lot of fish sauce. my mouth is watering just thinking of it. i will seriously give a prize to anyone who can tell me where to get this in salt lake city. i still haven’t heard of a place that sells it here.
anyhow, i hope to be back to blogging some lovely things soon.
my little norah was sick while on our trip to california, and upon returning i brought her to the doctor only to find out that she has an ear infection and RSV. yuck. my doctor didn’t even want to test for it since he really didn’t think she had it since she wasn’t too bad, but i asked him to anyway and sure enough she tested positive. luckily she’s been doing really well. let’s just hope it doesn’t get any worse. and, of course my little ezra has just started to get a runny nose and cough tonight. wish me luck that they will be on the mend soon.
i just got finished reading the keeper of the bees, by gene stratton-porter.
library summary: set in post world war I times, the book follows Jamie Louis Macfarlane — a wounded serviceman who finds his way on a grand adventure that makes him a better man and brings hope and love back into his life. i thought it was a good read. there were some points where i got a little bored, i think since it’s over 500 pages, but i still enjoyed reading it. it had some strong christian themes throughout the book, and i liked all of the relationships that were formed during the story.
we enjoyed celebrating three holidays over the weekend [valentine’s day, vietnamese new year, and presidents day]
and, most of all, i enjoyed finally getting our carpet in our newly finished basement! what a relief! we still have some work to do, but it’s been so nice to be able to actually go down there and let the kiddos play and not get all dirty. so, with that of course comes all the moving of boxes and things… so, that has taken up all my time. but, i can’t wait to share with you pictures of my new office/studio/craft room, or whatever they are calling it these days. my husband stained my concrete floors, and i’m in love with the color. oh, and did i tell you i ordered wallpaper too? i’m so excited to put it all together. i hope to share pictures soon. it will definitely be a work in progress as i have to keep myself from wanting to buy everything at once, but little by little i hope to make it a great place for inspiration! and, seriously… you’d laugh at all the random craft supplies i have. my closet is already full and i haven’t even put all my stuff in there. maybe one day i’ll show you a picture, but it may be embarrassing.
anyhow, sorry to ramble so much. it’s been a dream of mine to have my very own room, so, i’m a bit excited.
so, back to what i was originally going to post about.
soup.
this tortellini with vegetable soup has been a favorite at our house for years. if you haven’t noticed, i like soup.
{tortellini + vegetable soup}
ingredients
1 package fresh tortellini [i used italian sausage this time, but i like to change it up, chicken, cheese, whatever. this can be found the refrigerated pasta section at the store] 8-10 cups chicken broth 2 cups chopped carrots 1 cup chopped celery 1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained 1/2 package frozen chopped spinach or 1 cup fresh chopped spinach 1 zucchini squash diced 1/2 onion diced 1 clove garlic, minced parmesan cheese, grated for the top 1 tsp fresh ground pepper 1 tbsp dried or fresh parsley 1 tsp dried bay leaf, chopped or 1-2 dried leaves 1/2 tsp basil 1/2 tsp thyme 1/2 tsp oregano
directions in a large pot add broth, herbs + bring to a boil. add all vegetables and leave on medium to medium-high heat, covered until carrots are tender, about 20-30 minutes. add tortellini and cook for another 5-7 minutes. add parmesan cheese to the top of each serving.
[can also add shredded chicken]
*serve with yummy rolls or crusty bread
oh, and have a great weekend! i’m taking off early and heading to so. cal this weekend for my cousins wedding! [hi thi-anh!] should be fun! we’ll be partying it up on a yacht in newport beach! wish me luck as i’m taking my 7 month old norah with me. luckily, i’ll have lots of help since my parents and sisters are coming! should be fun! mainly, it will be great to see family and eat vietnamese food!
p.s. any good tips on shopping? i think i’ll try to go by fashion island, and south coast plaza…
i just got finished reading the keeper of the bees, by gene stratton-porter.