Butternut Squash Soup

Seriously, this cleanse is forcing me to become a legit cook! I have to prepare many of our meals from scratch now and am actually enjoying trying healthy "cleanse friendly" recipes. I made this soup tonight. It was amazing (and simple). It is a must try if you like Butternut Squash Soup.

2-3 TB Olive Oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled & cubed
1 butternut squash (peeled, seeded and cubed) OR Trader Joe's bag of already cubed butternut squash
1 (32 oz) container of chicken stock
pinch of the following: sea salt, pepper, cumin, curry powder, cinnamon, nutmeg
1/2 C of Sour Cream (this is not cleanse friendly, so I left this out)

1. In a large pot, saute onion, celery, carrot, potatoes, and squash in olive oil for 5 minutes. Pour in chicken broth - enough to cover the vegetables. Add seasonings/spices. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pot and simmer 40 minutes or until veggies are tender.
2. Add sour cream if desired then transfer soup to a blender or use a hand held blender - blend until smooth.

Maddie and Rowyn

Meet Maddie. She is Haven's friend and classmate who we love to have over for playdates. Her mom was also our family photographer. Maddie has taught Haven about what it is like living with childhood diabetes. We hope someday doctors can find a cure for kids like Maddie.

Sweet Rowyn... I still have a hard time believing I have a little blue eyed beauty.

Family Pictures Part 2

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Here are the rest of the pictures from the family photo session a few weeks ago. What a treat to have so many great shots of our family. If you are local, go check out Kirsten's website at www.kirstenevans.com. She does a great job!

Cleanse

Nate and I started a cleanse today. I am posting this declaration because I need as much accountability as possible! I am addicted to sugar, anything made with flour and coffee with lots and lots of creamer - especially the Pumpkin Pie flavor that is out right now! UGH. None of these delicious treats for the next 24 days.

Nate has been turned onto a company called Advocare (www.advocare.com/110910203). He has found a miracle energy drink called Spark and we both have enjoyed the all natural, sugar free, great tasting solution to our sluggish mornings. I take it each morning before my workout and love how much energy I have! So, as we have researched the company and products, we soon found that all of Advocare's vitamins and supplaments are 100% natural, pharmaceutical grade, and tested by board certified doctors. I have heard the amazing benefits of the cleanse, so decided to give it a go since I feel like my eating habits and overall health could use a boost! Plus, I still want to shed the last 7 pounds of baby weight that just keeps hanging on...

Today is our first day. I have not had a bite of sugar today and I am missing it! But, I am committed and determined to follow the rules since I know I am going to feel great in the end. I have been scouring my cookbooks and the internet for "cleanse friendly" meals. Pretty much a focus on lean meats, veggies, fruits and complex carbs. A friend gave me this recipe and it is worth sharing! I would make it and eat if even if I WASN'T on the cleanse! Plus, the girls ate it. That says a lot about a dish that is mainly veggies!

Italian Vegetables & Meatballs
One quartered and thinly sliced zucchini squash
One quartered and thinly sliced yellow squash
One small onion chopped
2-3 TB olive oil
2 Cups of baby spinach
1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce
1 "jar" of water
Meatballs - I used 2 bags of Trader Joe's frozen Turkey meatballs (24 total)
Brown Rice
Parmesan cheese

Saute chopped onion with olive oil in large sauce pan. Add sliced zucchini, yellow squash and spinach. Saute until veggies are tender. Add jar of marinara sauce and then fill jar with water and add that to mixture. Add meatballs and bring to a low boil. Reduce, cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Serve over brown rice and top with a little Parmesan cheese.

If you have any more recipes that you think I may enjoy on our cleanse - PLEASE send them my way!! =0)

The Great Pumpkin

Haven and her Kindergarten class went to the pumpkin patch last Friday. I was able to bring the other two sisters along so I could be a part of her fun day of pumpkin decorating and jump house bouncing. I love the fall...

Trick or Treat!

These are the Speer girls' Halloween costumes this year. Haven wanted to be a cheerleader (Thank you Costco), Parker a doggie (Thank you Nana for the most awesome pink poodle costume out there!) and Rowyn is the pink octopus (Haven's first Halloween costume that I saved). Maybe one of these Halloweens we will all coordinate with a fun and cute theme, but since my girls are so diverse in their personalities and interests, that may have to wait until we can all decide on something. May you have a fun and safe Halloween!

ATTACK ATTACK ATACK... Get back, Get Back, Get Back

I am playing catch up a bit, but wanted to showcase our little soccer player! Haven is loving the sport and she has surprised us with some real athletic potential! Based on her interests, we were thinking that she would only want to do dance and stay in tu-tus for her entire young adult life. But this girl is quick and has some serious skillz... much to her dad's delight! Will see where this will take us. For now, it is so fun to watch her play and I have become that "soccer mom" screaming encouragement (and some directions) on the sidelines.

Say, "CHEESE!"

I decided to have a friend take some family pictures in preparation for Christmas card season! Sure glad I took the time to gather coordinating outfits (fyi - got the girls' dresses at Naartjie) and comb some hair. You will most likely see the family portrait in your mailbox come December. Oh, and the one of me is for my community blogger position at BFItSanDiego.com. I get to blog about ideas/activities on how to keep our kids active and happy here in San Diego. I could not say no to such a fun opportunity! Plus, I have another outlet to use that side of my brain that often is neglected due to the demands of mothering.

Check out my first blog entry:
http://community.bfitsandiego.com/bfit-community/fall-family-beach-fun/

REAL Princesses!

Yes, here we are at Disneyland with all the princesses we could track down. We waited an hour to see three of them. I loved being at Disneyland with all my girls and Aunt Renee - who flew down for a few days. It was all decorated for Halloween and fall. But the weather was not cool and crisp - it was 92 degrees. Thankfully we found lots of shade, kept hydrated and on the move as much as we can - avoiding the really long lines. Do you know their is an app for that? =0)

We did purchase passes thanks to the money I made at a Family Swap Meet. So, if you ever want to join us, let me know!

KINDERGARTEN!!!

I know this sounds sooo cliche', but I can't believe I have a KINDERGARTNER! Where does the time go? My firstborn is growing up into such a sweet, confident little girl. And this big milestone only proves that I can do nothing to stop her getting older and tackling big moments like these. We decided to keep Haven at the Lutheran school where she attended preschool last year since she LOVED her school experience and made many special friends there. We are lucky they have a great Kindergarten program as well! Haven has two teachers - Mrs. Welty and Mrs. "L" and there are 22 kids in her class. And... um... 16 boys. I am sure those 6 girls are going to be tight friends by the time the school year is over!

Poop Story

I have to jot down our most current FaceBook posts just so I can remember last night's fiasco in days to come. It was just one of those "moments."

Melissa's Post: We have a Speer family first: Parker throwing a fit (this happens all the time) because we soon realized that Rowyn discovered the little training potty and helped herself to what was inside. Yes, her face was brown and Parker is yelling, "Ro Ro eatin my poo poo!"

Nate's Post: So the Adventures of Parker continue. So I hear Parker yelling. Not too uncommon but this is a good one so I decide to get up and investigate. I walk into the bathroom and Parker is screaming pointing at Rowyn. RoRo is covered in and eating poop. Parker is yelling "RoRo EAT MA POOPOO! NO RORO! NO EAT MA POOPOO! SHE EATIN MA POOPOO!!!!!! I grab said poop eater and am holding her out in front of me and do what any self respecting man in this situation would do, I yell for Melissa. Unreal.

Sea World with Nana and Papa!

These girls are so lucky to have such AWESOME grandparents. Both my folks and Nate's parents love taking the girls on grand adventures. This last week it was Sea World with Nana and Papa and they loved it! Knowing my mother-in-law, I knew they would not miss a thing. And sure enough, they saw all the shows and animal exhibits and played hard all day at the resort. They fell asleep immediately on the way home and it was impossible to wake them up to eat dinner.

Rowyn's Dedication

This past week we dedicated Rowyn at our new church - The Mission. It was even more special that Papa Bruce said the prayer over Rowyn! We made the decision a few weeks ago after some thought and prayer to attend a new church plant here in Encinitas. The pastor has been a mentor in Nate's life this past year and we enjoy the challenges and rewards that being a part of a baby church brings (we also were a part of a church plant 10 years ago in Valencia and loved the experience). Our prayer is that our girls experience the Gospel in a genuine way and we hope that this church can impact their lives as well as many others in our community!

Man, seeing these pictures really makes me want to get a nice camera!
Dear Santa...

P is for Parker... and Pomegranate

Haven and Parker standing by the plant that begins with the first letter of their names at our local Botanical Garden.