They were so excited when they saw their outfits. They don't generally fight over things and this was not exception. Max wanted to be a dog and Artemis loved the butterfly outfit. Note that we don't have two of everything, more like 20.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Happy Halloween 2011!
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Results of the James Bond Movie Marathon. And the Winner is...
If you only ever see one James Bond 007 movie, make it...
Friday, October 28, 2011
James Bond 007 Marathon, #22 Quantum of Solace and Recap
Tonight we watched #22, "Quantum of Solace" (2008). The female lead was incredible, the plot was top notch especially the continuity with the previous film and there wasn't a gadget to be seen. Not one. The theme song was something to be desired. Even so, this might be our favourite movie of the bunch. In order to erase the uncertainty, we will be watching "License to Kill" tomorrow night just to make sure.
Ed gave it a "9" rating and I gave it a "10".
To sum up our Marathon, Ed and I both voted Pierce Brosnan our favourite Bond. I mean, he IS Bond and everyone else is just trying to emulate him. Our favourite theme songs were those where the song matched the movie; For Your Eyes Only by Sheena Easton, A View to a Kill by Duran Duran, License to Kill by Gladys Knight, Live and Let Die by P. and L. McCartney and GoldenEye by Tina Turner.
In summary, below is the movie and what Ed and I (in that order) have rated it.
1. Dr. No, 6, 6
2. From Russia with Love, 5, 8
3. Goldfinger, 7, 7
4. Thunderball, 8, 9, (7.5 for Poppa)
5. You Only Live Twice, 7, 7
6. On Her Majesty's Secret Service, 6, 5
7. Diamonds Are Forever, 7, 8
8. Live and Let Die, 6, 7, (7 for Poppa)
9. The Man with the Golden Gun, 7, 9
10. The Spy Who Loved Me, 7, 7
11. Moonraker, 6, 7
12. For Your Eyes Only, 8, 9
13. Octopussy, 8, ???
14. A View to a Kill, 8, 8
15. The Living Daylights, 6, 8
16. License to Kill, 9, 10
17. GoldenEye, 7, 8
18. Tomorrow Never Dies, 8, 9
19. The World is Not Enough, 8, 8
20. Die Another Day, 7, 7
21. Casino Royale, 7, 8
22. Quantum of Solace, 9, 10
And so ends our twenty-two movie journey that began 35 days ago on Saturday, September 24, 2011. That is until #23 is released in 2012.
Check out tomorrow's post for our All-time Favourite James Bond Movie!
Ed gave it a "9" rating and I gave it a "10".
To sum up our Marathon, Ed and I both voted Pierce Brosnan our favourite Bond. I mean, he IS Bond and everyone else is just trying to emulate him. Our favourite theme songs were those where the song matched the movie; For Your Eyes Only by Sheena Easton, A View to a Kill by Duran Duran, License to Kill by Gladys Knight, Live and Let Die by P. and L. McCartney and GoldenEye by Tina Turner.
In summary, below is the movie and what Ed and I (in that order) have rated it.
1. Dr. No, 6, 6
2. From Russia with Love, 5, 8
3. Goldfinger, 7, 7
4. Thunderball, 8, 9, (7.5 for Poppa)
5. You Only Live Twice, 7, 7
6. On Her Majesty's Secret Service, 6, 5
7. Diamonds Are Forever, 7, 8
8. Live and Let Die, 6, 7, (7 for Poppa)
9. The Man with the Golden Gun, 7, 9
10. The Spy Who Loved Me, 7, 7
11. Moonraker, 6, 7
12. For Your Eyes Only, 8, 9
13. Octopussy, 8, ???
14. A View to a Kill, 8, 8
15. The Living Daylights, 6, 8
16. License to Kill, 9, 10
17. GoldenEye, 7, 8
18. Tomorrow Never Dies, 8, 9
19. The World is Not Enough, 8, 8
20. Die Another Day, 7, 7
21. Casino Royale, 7, 8
22. Quantum of Solace, 9, 10
And so ends our twenty-two movie journey that began 35 days ago on Saturday, September 24, 2011. That is until #23 is released in 2012.
Check out tomorrow's post for our All-time Favourite James Bond Movie!
Besos, The ZooNot Another Cooking Blog
You'd think that I was trying to alienate all of you. What, with yet another post about my dinner and no pictures of the kids. Hey, it beats posts about Bond right? Oops, I go on to talk about Bond at the bottom. Sorry.
Today I was thinking, what should I have for dinner (Ed is having last nights leftovers). We're getting ready to leave (in around 6 weeks) so I pulled some chicken breasts (or so I thought) out of the freezer. When it came time to cook dinner (read: too late to put them back and/or prepare something else), I realized that they were chicken legs with thighs that Nanna had got us when there was nothing else at the store. Seeing as I didn't have my staple cream of mushroom soup todrown fry them in (on the stovetop), I needed to come up with plan B. FYI, I don't have a plan B.
Speaking of leftovers, the kids had Shepard's Pie for the first time today (it wasn't ready in time for their dinner last night). Artemis finished her bowl and Max had two helpings.
It turns out that Nanna also cooked a mean Shepard's Pie this week. Her adaptation (to my recipe) was that she doesn't cook the hamburger beforehand. This ensures that it stays moist. I didn't have that problem but I used a ton of worcheshire sauce and added (an extra) egg.
So it turns out that I have more than two loyal followers. Okay, I knew this already but I thought that I would play up my patheticness (new word). In comes Amy to the rescue. She left me a comment with a link to a tried and true (unless you're me) roast chicken recipe.
Being the chef that I'm not (hence the post title), I decided that chicken legs/thighs was the same as a whole chicken and I would just pretend as such. I didn't want the potatoes (although I did have them) but figured that their purpose was to allow the air to circulate under the chicken. In turn, I put the chicken on a rack (I'm so adaptable). I also only cooked them for 45 minutes, because. No, I didn't just commit a grammatical error, it's just "because".
Well, the chicken turned out amazing (I never get tired of tooting my own horn). I served it with basmati rice and steamed broccoli (to go with Ed's dinner). I would have served it with freshly steamed beets but they're just cooking now.
I wanted to wait before picking the beets as we've been eating them every day foryears weeks but Ed informed me that it's supposed to go down to -5 tonight so I didn't want them to freeze. Does anyone (read: Amy my loyal commenter) know if they would have been okay anyways?
Since my last request met with a successful outcome, anyone know an easy and tried and true (read: I can't mess up) gravy recipe?
Back to Bond. Apparently, I've seen #21, "Casino Royale" (2006). I had four "flashbacks" throughout the movie that reminded me I'd seen it. Fortunately, it didn't ruin any of the suspense (I have a bad memory). For reasons I can't figure out (Ed and I have tried), I want to give this movie a high rating. I hated the beginning (too short and simple), I hated the first half of the movie (the plot was not obvious and was different than the latter part of the movie), I absolutely loved the middle part (the casino scenes) and I kept waiting for the movie to end. Sure there was a twist but it came at the expense of my boredom and didn't make up for anything. "Q" wasn't in the movie and there was only one gadget. This was my first Daniel Craig movie and I thought that for the times (2006), he did a really good job. I think that they were trying to portray him as a "hardened" Bond but Craig managed to soften him up quite nicely. The female lead (Eva Green) was one of our favourites. I look forward to the next one (which I don't believe I've seen but who knows...). Ed rated it a "7" and I gave it an "8".
Next up, #22, "Quantum of Solace" (2008). The last of the Bond films (until 2012).
Today I was thinking, what should I have for dinner (Ed is having last nights leftovers). We're getting ready to leave (in around 6 weeks) so I pulled some chicken breasts (or so I thought) out of the freezer. When it came time to cook dinner (read: too late to put them back and/or prepare something else), I realized that they were chicken legs with thighs that Nanna had got us when there was nothing else at the store. Seeing as I didn't have my staple cream of mushroom soup to
Speaking of leftovers, the kids had Shepard's Pie for the first time today (it wasn't ready in time for their dinner last night). Artemis finished her bowl and Max had two helpings.
It turns out that Nanna also cooked a mean Shepard's Pie this week. Her adaptation (to my recipe) was that she doesn't cook the hamburger beforehand. This ensures that it stays moist. I didn't have that problem but I used a ton of worcheshire sauce and added (an extra) egg.
So it turns out that I have more than two loyal followers. Okay, I knew this already but I thought that I would play up my patheticness (new word). In comes Amy to the rescue. She left me a comment with a link to a tried and true (unless you're me) roast chicken recipe.
Being the chef that I'm not (hence the post title), I decided that chicken legs/thighs was the same as a whole chicken and I would just pretend as such. I didn't want the potatoes (although I did have them) but figured that their purpose was to allow the air to circulate under the chicken. In turn, I put the chicken on a rack (I'm so adaptable). I also only cooked them for 45 minutes, because. No, I didn't just commit a grammatical error, it's just "because".
Well, the chicken turned out amazing (I never get tired of tooting my own horn). I served it with basmati rice and steamed broccoli (to go with Ed's dinner). I would have served it with freshly steamed beets but they're just cooking now.
I wanted to wait before picking the beets as we've been eating them every day for
Since my last request met with a successful outcome, anyone know an easy and tried and true (read: I can't mess up) gravy recipe?
Back to Bond. Apparently, I've seen #21, "Casino Royale" (2006). I had four "flashbacks" throughout the movie that reminded me I'd seen it. Fortunately, it didn't ruin any of the suspense (I have a bad memory). For reasons I can't figure out (Ed and I have tried), I want to give this movie a high rating. I hated the beginning (too short and simple), I hated the first half of the movie (the plot was not obvious and was different than the latter part of the movie), I absolutely loved the middle part (the casino scenes) and I kept waiting for the movie to end. Sure there was a twist but it came at the expense of my boredom and didn't make up for anything. "Q" wasn't in the movie and there was only one gadget. This was my first Daniel Craig movie and I thought that for the times (2006), he did a really good job. I think that they were trying to portray him as a "hardened" Bond but Craig managed to soften him up quite nicely. The female lead (Eva Green) was one of our favourites. I look forward to the next one (which I don't believe I've seen but who knows...). Ed rated it a "7" and I gave it an "8".
Next up, #22, "Quantum of Solace" (2008). The last of the Bond films (until 2012).
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
What's for Dinner?
Today I actually made it to Playgroup. You see, last Tuesday, Ed helped me get the kids all ready (it takes two to make it on time). When we arrived, there was a sign on the door saying that playgroup (for that day) was cancelled. Here I'd gone to all the effort of getting us out of the house and I wasn't going to let it go to waste. So, I took the kids to the park and we all had a great time.
At playgroup today, Artemis set herself up to paint and did a pretty good job (except the one swipe where she touched her top and pant leg with RED, NON-REMOVAL paint). She really enjoys drawing, doing puzzles and reading.
Both of them sat through circle time for the first time (the entire 20 minutes). Max even got up and was doing some of the motions. Max loves music. He loves to listen to the radio (rock or country) and play along. He also loves to read.
Both kids are talking up a storm and Artemis has been using two words "sentences" for the past few weeks (Max has for a while, usually "More" followed by a food). Today, Artemis handed me my shoes and said "shoes Mama".
For the past few days, Artemis has dropped her one and only nap (this could be why she was in such a bad mood today, probably her first day ever!). Maybe it's the change in season?
Ed has been really busy with work so we haven't had a chance to watch the final two Bond movies. It's probably a good thing as Ed thinks that we're losing our readerhip with all this "Bond Talk" (what is one person less than zero?).
Tonight I made "Shepard's Pie" for the first time. I basically followed this recipe with the following changes. I didn’t have any beef broth but found that the hamburger was moist enough. I added an egg and oregano to the hamburger (before frying it, as if I was making hamburgers). I used carrots and corn. I ended up broiling the pie for a few minutes at the end although it was starting to brown. Afterward, I thought that a few strips of fresh parmesan cheese on top (under the broiler) would be good. We’ll try it on the leftovers. I served it with a cucumber and yogurt salad (garnished with crushed garlic).
Overall, it turned out really well. That's saying a lot because; I'm no cook (until the kids came along, I'd never baked a chicken), I don't like mashed potatoes (like at ALL), I don't like ground beef (as in pasta sauce, hamburgers are okay, if you try and tell me that it's all the same, it's NOT), and to top it off, I don't like Shepard's Pie. I'm currently eating the rest of my dinner, cold while I'm typing this and it's really good.
So, why would I cook something that I didn't even like? Well, because Ed really likes it and I want to continue to offer the kids different food options (especially foods high in iron). Speaking of kids and food, for the past few weeks, they've been feeding themselves almost all of their meals even ones that require spoons and forks. We still give them their (pureed) vegetables except for beets. This week, they've been devouring (small pieces of) beets from our own garden. I've got another pot left and then we're done for the year.
Anyone have any secrets to baking a chicken that; comes out cooked (kind of key), golden brown and is easy to prepare/cook when two kids are running through your legs (literally)?
Next time, I'll take pictures of the kids and not dinner. Really, there isn't time for both.
At playgroup today, Artemis set herself up to paint and did a pretty good job (except the one swipe where she touched her top and pant leg with RED, NON-REMOVAL paint). She really enjoys drawing, doing puzzles and reading.
Both of them sat through circle time for the first time (the entire 20 minutes). Max even got up and was doing some of the motions. Max loves music. He loves to listen to the radio (rock or country) and play along. He also loves to read.
Both kids are talking up a storm and Artemis has been using two words "sentences" for the past few weeks (Max has for a while, usually "More" followed by a food). Today, Artemis handed me my shoes and said "shoes Mama".
For the past few days, Artemis has dropped her one and only nap (this could be why she was in such a bad mood today, probably her first day ever!). Maybe it's the change in season?
Ed has been really busy with work so we haven't had a chance to watch the final two Bond movies. It's probably a good thing as Ed thinks that we're losing our readerhip with all this "Bond Talk" (what is one person less than zero?).
Tonight I made "Shepard's Pie" for the first time. I basically followed this recipe with the following changes. I didn’t have any beef broth but found that the hamburger was moist enough. I added an egg and oregano to the hamburger (before frying it, as if I was making hamburgers). I used carrots and corn. I ended up broiling the pie for a few minutes at the end although it was starting to brown. Afterward, I thought that a few strips of fresh parmesan cheese on top (under the broiler) would be good. We’ll try it on the leftovers. I served it with a cucumber and yogurt salad (garnished with crushed garlic).
Overall, it turned out really well. That's saying a lot because; I'm no cook (until the kids came along, I'd never baked a chicken), I don't like mashed potatoes (like at ALL), I don't like ground beef (as in pasta sauce, hamburgers are okay, if you try and tell me that it's all the same, it's NOT), and to top it off, I don't like Shepard's Pie. I'm currently eating the rest of my dinner, cold while I'm typing this and it's really good.
So, why would I cook something that I didn't even like? Well, because Ed really likes it and I want to continue to offer the kids different food options (especially foods high in iron). Speaking of kids and food, for the past few weeks, they've been feeding themselves almost all of their meals even ones that require spoons and forks. We still give them their (pureed) vegetables except for beets. This week, they've been devouring (small pieces of) beets from our own garden. I've got another pot left and then we're done for the year.
Anyone have any secrets to baking a chicken that; comes out cooked (kind of key), golden brown and is easy to prepare/cook when two kids are running through your legs (literally)?
Next time, I'll take pictures of the kids and not dinner. Really, there isn't time for both.
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