Tasteful Tuesday - Fr. Jay Style

This weekend, we were so fortunate to have our dear friend and Addie Jo's Godfather visit us from Massachusetts - Fr. Jay!  And even though we had a great time visiting, playing board games, watching games on TV, walking, etc., we did what we like to do most, 

and that's EAT! 

Addie and Fr. Jay by the fire

So this Tasteful Tuesday is an over the top tribute to Fr. Jay Mello, who could possibly be the only other person on the planet who enjoys food eating, cooking, and talking about food as much as we do (well, and maybe including this family, too)!  

Here's how we celebrated his visit:

Preparing Friday night's Italian feast. Katie's hands hard at work.

The messy gnocchi counter

Slaving away

The Table at Mom and Dad's

Gluten free meatballs, gnocchi with butter thyme sauce, chicken salta boca

Salta Boca with prosciutto 

I forgot to take a picture of DESSERT, probably because it wasn't very pretty, but it tasted great, nonetheless!  I also added 3/4 of a bag of white chocolate chips to it and it was a hit!

Part of Saturday morning dessert breakfast -

Sticky Buns before going into the oven

Saturday night = DESSERTS

Mulled Wine

Apple Cider

Sugar Cookies

BAT Brownies

And finally, Sunday football food:

Queso, Buffalo Chicken Dip, and Pico = football food!

What a great way to celebrate the weekend.  

Thanks for visiting, Fr. Jay! 

We look forward to gaining another 5 pounds next time, too! 

October FLASHBACK

Flashback... 
October 2012 
Notice anything similar here?

Adelaide Josephine, 9 months: 

And you all wonder why I give hair updates...

Now Flash Forward... 

October 2013

June Mercedes, 4 months - 

Still our cute baldy

I'm Cute and Itsy Bitsy

Mama Sahm - 56 Years Young

We celebrated my Mom's birthday this week and I think she had a great night!

Here's what went down - 

Menu - 

Pulled Pork and Rolls

Brocoli Slaw

Roasted Butternut Squash and Potatoes

Ice Cream Sundaes with Chocolate Chip Cookies (Mom = cookie monster)

Outfits - 

Halloween Specials, see below! 

Gift - 

We all went in and got her this for the new upstairs guest house kitchenette that is up and running!  

Getting ready with her pumpkin TUTU

The deer came by to say happy birthday.  Mom was not excited to see them because they eat all her plants! 

On the other hand, Addie Jo was excited to see them! 

But it was too wet and cold out to chase them! 

Hair Accessory by Bill's cousin, Jill!

While we cooked, Grandpa was in charge of entertaining the Boo Boo, and I stole away to get a few shots of how much fun they were having...

Dancing! 

Now it's time to be shy

And the Bug just chilled on the couch

And hung with grandma, of course

And then she joined us at the table.

And laughed at grandma - 

4 of the same pic doesn't hurt ;)

Ice Cream Sundae time - 

AJ colored Mom a Mary pic

Then Junie got some lovin -

And then the BIG girls (daughters) stayed behind for the REAL present mom wanted - help painting!

We decided that for each others' birthdays now, our gift will be to help out the birthday girl/boy for a couple of hours however that person wants to use us - house work, yard work, however!  I'm liking this new tradition already thinking of the help I could use sealing these old floors or steaming the upstairs carpet haha.

Kate and Jess - professional artists painters - no joke! 

Here is what Mom and Dad are trying to get ready - their upstairs to use as a guest house - it's looking awesome and really coming together! 

Almost ready!

They put in this little kitchenette where Mom's new mini Keurig will go!  

I'll have to put more pics up when it's done but don't you all just want to stay here???  

I think Bill and I might be one of their first guests after Fr. Jay leaves! 

Anyways, Mom, 

Thanks for always making your house (and my house growing up) a HOME.  

Thanks for your constant support, love, and prayers.

And for being honest and sincere at all times, sometimes til it hurts ;);

For encouraging us to always be willing to sacrifice, sometimes til it hurts, too! 

And for showing us what living a saintly life on Earth looks like.

You're such a blessing to us and truly the best!  

We are better because of you!

Love,

Me 

(and all of us who know you)

7 QUICK TAKES

I have been sitting on pins and needles waiting for this Friday morning to role around (or errr, for Saturday night) so I could link up with Jen and the gang to post this, especially -

What a Beauty! 

1.) VERILY MAGAZINE's Nov/Dec issue has arrived!

It's just fabulous - the issues just keep getting better and better.  The blood, sweat, and tears that have gone into putting a start up magazine into print is all more than I can comprehend but I think that now, more than ever, the women in our society NEED this!  I hope and pray that Verily will get the funding it needs to keep going!

See if you can spot Verily at Barnes and Nobles, NYC: 

I spy...

TA DAH! Janet and Kara

2.) Janet Sahm and Kara Eschbach were interviewed on Live from the Couch on CBS New York on Monday! CHECK IT OUT HERE!!!  

Yeah, girls! 

3.) Just in case you live under a rock aren't married to a TIGERS FAN, you might not know that the post season of Major League Baseball is being played right now.  Tigers vs. Red Sox.  Or Red Sox vs. Tigers, I should say?  I've spent a lot more time watching hanging around Fenway pubs and listening to my Boston friends talk about why they live and DIE for their Red Sox over and over again than I have watched the Tigers.  My first year of Grad School was the year they Broke the Curse after 86 years. So I kind of had to become a semi-fan, or at least someone who appreciates that old historical ball club, especially since Indy doesn't have a team.  BUT Fr. Jay will probably rub it in Bill's face incessantly if the Sox win, so I'm kind of routing for Detroit at this point. 

Anyways, as I'm posting this, GAME 6 is going on...

We'll soon see if the Tigers make it to Game 7 but if they do, they will be playing at the same time as Peyton plays the Colts for Sunday night football.  Hmmmm... Bill might have to purchase a 2nd tv for the house! 

Okay, Red Sox just hit a grand slam.

4.)  Yikes.  Moving on.  

Addie and June went to the Princess Abode Miss Molly's house for her second birthday party last Sunday and it was the cutest Care Bears themed party EVER! 

Cutie Patootie Birthday Girl!

Watching on (with coveted princesses in hand)

Junie in her party dress.  Go TIGERS.

And just in case you didn't see AJ's tights up close - 

5.) I just recently found out that a second movie of the BEST MOVIE EVER is being made and I don't know if I can handle it, I'm that exited!!!!

I guess it took Jim Carrey 2 decades to agree to it but who else could be Lloyd Christmas???

I guess it's called, Dumb and Dumber To.  Good one.

6.) And speaking of Harry Dunne Jeff Daniels, I guess the show he's in on HBO, Newsroom, is pretty remarkable.  Since we are considering dropping cable, I don't see us paying for any more channels, BUT this video on YouTube is pretty interesting and makes me want to get it - Definitely worth watching!!!

7.) And even though more fun things happened this week (like mom's bday), I will save those things for other posts and end with this - my one and only Pumpkin Spice Latte of the season.  AND it's kind of a big deal because I haven't gotten a Starbucks in a long time because of this.  Why did my Pumpkin Spiced Latte have to make a stance at all?  What purpose did it serve?  Anyways, I wasted spent the $4.91 on this ORANGE goodness as a special treat - 

Don't mind the sliced finger - thought I'd put it in for effect... yummy! :-/ 

Cheers! 

Happy October Weekend, Friends!

And I'll leave you with a cool Verily quote card - one of the many things I LOVE about this magazine -