below is the brunch buffet table. it included mini quiche, lemon whoopie pies, pineapple bars, banana bread pops and fruit cups. the banners are from the fabulous tomkat studio.

we also set up a lemon:aid area with information on blood:water mission and lemonade favors for the guests. (and a hunky guy is posing by it for you.)

here’s the birthday girl.

and her beautiful hands.

here’s our other little baby enjoying the party.

here’s some pictures featuring my pom madness. believe me, this is only half of it.

we also made little jingle bells to ring after we sang the happy birthday song. if you know claire, she LOVES bells!

and just a couple more pictures our claire bear.

we love her so.

banana cupcakes (makes 12-14 regular size cupcakes)

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (about 4 ripe bananas), plus 1 whole banana, for garnish (optional)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup finely chopped pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in center of flour mixture. In well, mix together butter, mashed bananas, eggs, and vanilla. Stir to incorporate flour mixture (do not overmix). Stir in pecan chips until just incorporated. Dividing evenly, spoon batter into muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan; cool completely on a wire rack.

honey cinnamon frosting

• 1 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Using an electric mixer, beat confectioners’ sugar, unsalted butter, honey, and ground cinnamon until smooth, 4 to 5 minutes.

Top each cupcake with a dollop of frosting and enjoy!

PB Brownie Bites

Makes approx. 40 brownie bites

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
40 mini Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, unwrapped

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray mini cupcake pan with non stick spray.  In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, sugars and vanilla.  Beat in eggs one at a time. Gradually add flour, cocoa, and salt and mix until combined.  Fill each cupcake slot slightly more than halfway but not more than 2/3 full.  Place a peanut butter cup in each slot pressing it down until it is almost level with the batter.  Bake in preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until done.  Allow the brownie bites to cool for 5-10 minutes before removing from the cupcake tin.  Enjoy!

first, slice the sausage links as well as half a red onion, half a red bell pepper and one jalepeno. then sautee them in a large skillet with a little drizzle of canola oil. while they cook, boil of pot of salted water and add a package of whole wheat penne pasta. cook the pasta as directed, drain and toss with a can of green chile enchilada sauce (available in the mexican food aisle). in a large colander, drain and rinse a can of black beans, a can of corn and a can of diced tomatoes and mix together.  i only used about half the bean/corn/tomato mix and added it to the sausage skillet and tossed everything together. then plate your dish! i put some of the green chile pasta in a bowl, spooned on some of the sausage/veggie mix and then topped it all with some chopped cilantro and a sprinkle of grated cheese. in all, it took less than 30 min to make and it was delicious!

then we walked around dowtown flagstaff and ate some amazing crepes on this cute little patio outside. nutella, ghiradelli chocolate, raspberry preserves and whipped cream? yes, please!

then we stopped by the famed macy’s coffee. my cappuccino was perfect!

after that we hung out at the hotel, played some pass the pigs with the olbinski’s and marveled at our 3 foot deep, reclaimed water, liquid/solid buttoned toilets. they were an experience to say the least.

the next morning we trekked back down to the heat with a little pit stop at the anthem outlets, yay!

it was a nice, restful weekend. claire was an angel on both car rides, was a little cranky at the hotel but then let us sleep most of the night. it was fun to get away with friends!

2. speaking of paris, i am going to go to this french bakery/cafe in scottsdale ASAP. i am dying to know if their croissants come close to the undescribable perfection of france. i am crossing my fingers because the husband and wife duo who run it lived there for years. plus he is a fashion photographer and she is a former model for LV, YSL and Hermes. ACK!!! i think i might have found my favorite place on earth and it is only 25 minutes from my house! macaroons, espresso, croque monsieurs, quiche lorraine and crepes+fashion+photography=nicky heaven.

- the colors are hot pink, bright orange and lime green. very punchy, very summery, very girly.

- i am taking it upon myself to create these flower pinwheels to display in metal buckets filled with gerber daisies. cute!

- i am also planning on hanging these paper flowers from the rafters of the park ramada.

- the food will be an all american bbq. that means skin-on hot dogs and buns from von hanson’s. no crappy grocery store wieners here, but authentic minnesota meat! (how cool is it that they have one lonely store out here in chandler?!) bbq beans and sides from our own joe’s real bbq, yum. and a few other dishes that i will put together.

- did i mention mini cupcakes yet? i’ve discovered that mini cupcakes are the WAY to go for parties. less mess, easier to eat and the silly skinny-mini’s who say “i don’t want dessert” can’t even resist a tiny bite of cake perfection. come on!

- there will be singing. yep. our good friend and church worship pastor, stephen cole, is helping us make the evening extra special by leading us in song. they will be songs that celebrate the gift God has given us in claire, reflect on the journey this has been in our lives and ultimately tell Him how much we love Him. and if you are a guest and don’t sing? expect to be STRUCK DOWN by lightening. just kidding. but really i might give you the evil eye and you DO NOT want to chance that.

so there are some of my fantabulous plans. i cannot wait to have our close friends and family there to celebrate claire and what an amazing little miracle she is in this world.

it’s lunchtime and i don’t feel like a sandwich. or a salad. or fast food. years ago my mom gave me this super easy, healthy and light lunch idea and i crave it. here’s the lowdown- arrange about 8 crackers on a plate (i use milton’s herb and garlic rounds.) then thinly slice up a roma tomato (or whatever kind you have around.) place the tomato slice on top of the crackers. sprinkle with shaved or shredded (NOT grated) parmesan cheese (i get the kind in the little plastic tub for quick use.) season the crackers with fresh cracked pepper and italian seasoning. drizzle a wee bit of balsamic over the crackers. microwave for about a minute and enjoy! they are fresh, zesty and filling. yummy!

anyway, my mom (and claire of course) accompanied me out to the big ol farm in queen creek, where we picked peaches in the breezy sun, got eaten by mosquitoes and peed on by some stray farm dog. can you believe i am speaking of desert-y, barren phoenix? in fact, the guy ahead of us picked over 100 pounds of peaches and was from florida. he said they were better than theirs. yup. even better was you could eat all you wanted in the orchard for free, and luckily we brought wipes because these are the juiciest, sweetest peaches i have ever tasted. perfect. here’s some pictures from our day:

my mom is so pretty.

yum. and they are organic, the farm has never used pesticides in 45 years.

did i mention my mom is silly?

we had to document claire’s first farm visit even though she slept through it all!

the sleepy girl. so cute. sweeter than any peach there.