Mayday May Day

The end of April is fast approaching and I for one am pretty excited.  April was a pretty good month for the Ebbrecht family, but there are several things I am greatly looking forward to in May.  Warmer weather is at the top of the list, especially with a baby who loves to be outside.  What else is there to be excited about?  Well, since you asked, here are my top five reasons to celebrate next month...in order of occurrence.

1. The 140th Kentucky Derby.  The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports will take place Saturday, May 3. Hats, horses and hopefully warm weather...what other excuses do you need to throw a lawn party?  This year my money (if I were a betting girl) is on Wicked Strong.  He's No.4 in Derby points and as his name alludes, he will be racing for The One Fund Boston, which supports those affected by the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings.
2. Rock N Ribs.  Mmmmmm I do love good barbecue and this year I'm pleased to announce that Roo will be cooking up and competing with his finger lickin' good Roo-B-Q.  The two day festival of meat is May 9-10 at the Ozark Empire Fairgrounds.  Come out and sample barbecue from 77 vendors and vote for the best...ahem...Roo-B-Q, of course.
3. Mother's Day.  Call up the florist, paint a piece of pottery, or hit up the nearest Hallmark but DO NOT FORGET to let your mom know just how awesome she is on Sunday, May 11.  After all, this is the one holiday we mothers had to earn.  Taylor cheated and gave me my gift early (kudos to Dad for helping her pick out the fab golf clubs), but that does not excuse her from showering me with adoration on the big day.
4.Taylor's first birthday.  Wow, it seems unbelievable that my baby is going to be a year old on May 20.  This has been the craziest, stressful, emotional yet rewarding year.  Having a baby is hard work, thus all the more reason to celebrate the previous item on the list.  I can't believe how much Taylor has grown in the last 11 months and I know the next month is going to fly by.  She is becoming quite the little girl and I'm looking forward to celebrating the day God gave us such a special little princess.
5. Memorial Day.  With such a crazy May schedule, I am looking forward to the kickoff of Lake Season even more than usual this year.  By then I will be more than ready for a weekend of relaxation and s'more roasting.  Although, with a one-year-old, not sure really how relaxing it's going to be.  But there will be s'mores.  And the Aqua Lily Pad will make it's lake debut.  If you need me, I'll be floating in the cove.  Or chasing Taylor.  Or hopefully roasting s'mores.
Whew!  And then it's on to June...

chetzels

So I just read a blog post in which the author claimed to have only missed one semi weekly post since the beginning of his blog over a year ago.  Since the beginning of my blog, I have missed...okay, who's keeping track really?  I'm averaging one post per week--ish, so we'll go with that.  Anyhow...

It's baseball season!  Even if you're not a sports fan, there is still reason to celebrate--chetzel dogs at Hammons Field!  A frankfurter served on a warm soft pretzel bun and covered in nacho cheese.  It's my favorite stadium food item and the best reason I can think of to go to a Springfield Cardinals' baseball game.  For years I had to wait until opening day to get my chetzel fix and not-so-silently wondered, why is nobody else figuring out that everything is better served on a pretzel?
Then finally, Sonic heard me.  Last spring the drive-in introduced their line of pretzel dogs--plain with mustard or topped with cheddar cheese, bacon and sauteed onions.  What was a girl to do except have a chetzel dog taste off?  Let me tell ya, not disappointed.  Hammons' chetzel was bigger, I prefer it's nacho sauce and eating it means your at a baseball game.  However, Sonic's dog was cheaper, more readily available and I loved the added flavor kick of the bacon and onions.  (Chetzel tip--avoid the plain with mustard.  It will only make you wish you had picked the cheddar, bacon, onion dog.)
After Sonic's pretzel success, numerous other fast food chains jumped on the pretzel bun train.  Wendy's pretzel bacon cheeseburger was a winner and their encore performance with a crispy chicken pretzel sandwich was equally thrilling. Then Chili's introduced two sandwiches to their lunch combo menu--I prefer the BLT to the chicken avocado.  And now you can even buy pretzel buns in the grocery store and create your own chetzel dog, chetzel burger, or chetzel whatever at home.
Just when I thought I was in chetzel heaven, Wendy's went and discontinued their pretzel bun menu.  What?!?  Don't tell me the pretzel craze was just a fad!!
Have no fear.  Wendy's may be out, but Steak and Shake has more than made up for it.  They have created the greatest pretzel burger (if not THE greatest burger period) in the history of burgers.  The pepperoni pizza burger.  Two beef patties smothered in marinara sauce and covered in melted mozzarella and provelone cheese, topped with pepperoni and served on a buttered and lightly garlic salted pretzel bun.  Delicious.  I recommend splurging the 29 cents and adding Parmesan garlic seasoning to your fries and of course complementing it with a chocolate milk shake.

I heard from an inside source that the pepperoni pizza burger may be available for a limited time only, so grab one while you can and do your part to keep it on the menu!  And let me know if there are any other chetzels out there I need to try.

party animals

One month and 13 days until my baby turns one.  Wow.  The time goes so fast and as the minutes until her birthday tick away, the clock seems to be speeding up.  I really am excited to celebrate this milestone, it's the party planning that makes me nervous.
This weekend I had the pleasure of attending birthday parties for two of my cousins.  First up was Sophia's fourth birthday--a swim party.  What kid doesn't like pizza, presents and pool time?  Taylor clearly enjoyed herself.  The Cinderella theme was cute--especially with Sophia and sister Ella sporting matching Disney dresses.  The Cinderella and Prince Charming wedding cake knock off was both gorgeous and delicious.  Crisis averted when Steven took off work early to track down a stand in baker when the first choice developed kidney stones and canceled last minute.  And props to Mindy for booking a pool with a hot tub so the adults could enjoy splash time as well.  Although, it's frowned upon to leave your baby unattended, so this mama stayed in the kiddie pool.

Then we headed over to Ruthie's second birthday circus extravaganza--a big time celebration for several reasons.  While it was Ruthie's second birthday, it was her first official birthday party.  After being born premature, Ruthie spent several weeks in the hospital and has been quarantined for most of the last two years while her lungs developed.  A true miracle child.  Her parents went all out, turning the house into the Big Top and serving circus favorites: chili dogs, nachos, popcorn, peanuts and of course, cotton candy.  The real stars of the show were Ringmaster Ruthie and her performing pups.  Book them now for your next party.
In the last several months, we've also attended an indoor snow party fit for a princess, my nephew's first birthday Mickey Mouse celebration, a backyard circus bash and a Minnie Mouse party with the most adorable cupcakes to name a few.
As a parent, you always feel pressure to throw the biggest and best party for your own kid.  As my Pinterest board grows, I'm trying to reign myself in and not go too overboard.  I have to remind myself that a first birthday is really all for the parents.  I'll save the "overboard" for when Taylor is old enough to enjoy it.

product endorsement: The Magic Bullet

I love to cook and I'm always on the lookout for gadgets and gizmos that will make life in the kitchen easier or just downright more fun.  So, for my birthday I asked for the Magic Bullet.  I know it's not a new product, but my love of milkshakes was hardly enough reason to bite the bullet and buy one.  However, intending to make homemade baby food for Taylor was a perfect excuse.
The Bullet is in fact a perfect tool for pureeing vegetables.  But, as it turns out, our daughter is too independent to be fed anything on a spoon, insisting on feeding herself finger foods from the get-go, so then I was back to owning a fancy 21-piece personal milkshake maker.  Just in time for eggnog shake season, I might add.
It was Roo who actually discovered the value of the Bullet for the Ebbrechts.  Our mornings can be pretty crazy some days, especially during Obamacare crunch time.  Roo is usually up and ready to head to the office before I can manage to lift my head off the pillow.  Granted, getting myself out of bed at a reasonable time has been easier this past week with Taylor actually sleeping through the night, but I've learned not to get too comfortable with that schedule.
So, all that to say, Roo started requesting smoothies for breakfast.  Brilliant!  Isn't that what's advertised on the front of the Magic Bullet box anyway?  Throw in a banana, a handful of strawberries and a dash of milk then 10 seconds later Roo is out the door with a good chunk of his daily allowance of fruit and dairy.  The advantage of the Bullet over a conventional blender is that the smoothie (or milkshake or frozen coffee concoction) is mixed up in the mug you'll drink it out of.  Use the handy lid/straw combo and you're good to go.  Measuring ingredients has never been easier and no extra dishes to clean!
But wait, there's more!  Beyond smoothies (or milkshakes or frozen coffee concoctions), our next favorite thing to use the Bullet for is homemade sauces.  Our personal favorite--ginger sauce reminiscent of Nakato Japanese Steakhouse.  Just throw in the ingredients and pulse it together.  No chopping onions, or finely mincing the ginger for this one.  So easy it saved my family from frozen pizza last night.
I could go on and on about how the personal blender takes up so little space on your counter, all the many accessories included in the box and not to mention the great ideas in the owner's manual/recipe book (cheesecake, what??), but you can get all that from the infomercial.  If you're into making single servings of frozen beverages or sauces, I highly recommend you pick one of these up.