Bird Feeders

Sometime after we first moved into our house, I realized I needed a bird feeder in the backyard. I wanted to be able to look out my living room window & watch the birds. My husband made a small garden out there & I knew it would be a good place for a bird feeder. Well, my hubby got me a nice one with an iron hook (that stakes into the ground) to hang it on for an anniversary gift (I think -or maybe it was my birthday -shame on me for forgetting!). I wanted a good one that wouldn't get easily destroyed because I had had cheap plastic ones that never lasted. This was a nice glass "Droll Yankee"one. It's supposed to be one of the better brands of bird feeders. We have really enjoyed watching the different birds come & after we had our son, so did he. Cameron has always loved watching the birds come & go. For awhile, we had a cheap plastic feeder hanging on the big tree in our front yard but, it didn't last long. It was kind of neat in the winter though because we could look out the windoow in our kids playroom & watch the birds. More recently I realized we should put one in the large Wax Myrtle bushes that we have outside our kitchen windows. We were always sitting in the breakfast area with nothing to look at except those bushes. Due to finances, we got a cheap plastic one but, we've had a lot of fun watching the birds. We've had all kinds from Finches to Cardinals & even a cute little chipmunk who keeps raiding it. My baby, Emily's high chair is right nest to the window & she loves watching & making little bird noises and Cameron can identify a lot of bird types from books we have. If you want an inexpensive way to entertain kids & enjoy nature, I highly recommend bird feeders. Even if they're "cheep, cheep" ones.

Other Favorite Park -Sawnee mountain Preserve

In May I posted an entry with my top 10 favorite parks in the area. I decided to do an entry about another favorite park that I really like. Sawnee Mountain preserve has 2 seperate parks off of 2 seperate roads. There is a welcome center, trails & park off of Spot Rd and another park w/trails, a small playground and an outdoor ampitheater (for classes & outdoor performances) off Tribble Gap Rd.

The one on Spot Rd is neat because it has a Welcome center w/a library with books, games, toys and movies all w/nature & outdoor themes. My son would spend an hour or 2 in just that part if he could! There is a porch w/big rocking chairs that overlooks a pond w/waterfalls and it's a great place to kick back & relax/have a snack after a nature hike. Off of the nature trails there is a sandbox w/sand toys, and building area w/wood pieces that fit together and a little dog-house size cabin as an example of what you can build. There is also a tree house with ramps that you walk up & kids can run in and play. They have outdoor & adventure classes for kids too if they are elementary or teenage years. My niece & nephew have taken a class in the summer & they did some pretty neat things like zip-lining, tree climbing & white-water rafting. I spent about 3 hrs. at this location the other day w/my son. We met some friends for a nature hike & picnic. This mainly consisted of walking on the trail until the kids were tired & letting them play in the sandbox & have a snack. Cameron & I stayed longer than the others & ended up going in the visitor's center (I mainly wanted to get out of the heat & still occupy Cameron in some way!) and he played with some toys while I read a book about hiking with kids. Then I did a couple of puzzles with him & then he was hungry so, we went out & sat on the rocking chair porch while he ate his sandwich. Then, we went back inside & read a couple of books together before we left. This may sound boring to some of you but, I loved it! Cameron is so easy to occupy & he is very interested in learning about stuff so, he's fun to do stuff with. Also, time away from the baby is needed sometimes in order to give him more attention. Here, we had a lot to do & it was good quality time spent together.
Well, I digress...
The Tribble Gap Rd location has a trail that leads to the Indian Seats which is a natural rock formation with awesome views of the North GA mountains. It's about 1.5 mi hike & uphill so, little kids may not make it if they're not used to walking a lot. It's worth it for the view. There are also picnic tables & a playground for kids when you first go in the park so, kids can play & eat too. All in all, it's a neat place if you're an outdoorsy-type.

Places to find antiques and unique used stuff

I love places where you can find unique & cheap used furniture & other stuff for the home. Sometimes I'll end up getting a small side table & sometimes I'll find a tea cup or something small that I just like. There are a couple of great places in the area where you can find antiques & other used items for a good price. One of them is "The Green Bean Exchange" on Canton Hwy (Hwy 20) in Cumming in the Ingalls shopping center. It's like an anique mall divided into sections with different people's stuff for sale. There is another location on Canton Hwy going towards Canton in the Freehome area also (it's set up differently & is not as big). You can get unique jewelry for $2 -$4 (bracelets or earrings) & it's not stuff you find everywhere. I got my Mom a cute bracelet there for her birthday. I also have seen really cute children's wicker furniture there & you can even get some used children's books for $1. Once I saw the cutest old children's school desk (the metal chair w/attached wooden desk top) & it was painted a light blue color & had a little brick schoolhouse painted on the chairback for only $12. It was a steal but, for some reason I didn't get it even though I could picture my little boy sitting so cute in it. I went back for it several days later (after it really got to me) & it was gone. One of the ladies who worked there said she rembered it & thought it was a really cheap price & wouldn't last long & of course, it didn't. If I had time (& money), I would go there frequently to scour the place.
There is another place in Alpharetta on Hwy 9 (between Old Milton & Windward Pkwy) called "Queen of Hearts" which I also like a lot. It's a big antique mall divided up in into sections or rooms of people's stuff for sale. Once I got a picture there that I love. One year (after I was married but, before I had my first child, I was looking there & saw this great french painting of a bicycle outside of a pastery shop & it had a black distressed frame. I just loved it but, it was $100. It was just after my birthday & I thought to myself "I never buy anything like this for myself & I think I should!" I took my birthday money & bought it & I was so happy. I have loved it ever since. I also got a cute round mirror with a wooden frame painted with flowers (it's hard to describe but, it was really cute) for I think $20. I also got a really cute toile printed little foot stool there once as well. I think it was $15 & I really didn't know what I was going to do with it but, I just liked it.
Anyway, both of these places sometimes have sidewalk sales & stuff is marked down even more then. You can get some real steals. And if you can sew, apholster or can re-finish or paint stuff, you can do a lot with what you get.

Recipe with 2 versions -for adults & kids

I'm always looking for recipes that my kids would like and also recipes that my husband & I like that my kids will eat as well. This is not always easy. My son dislikes almost all fruits and vegetables and my husband is very picky about certain ones as well. When it comes to dinner, I feel like I can't win sometimes. Anyway I have an easy recipe for Pesto Chicken & Pasta that I like to make & that my family likes as well. It's slightly grown-up for my baby so, I have a way to convert it to a baby-friendly one as well. Luckily, my youngest, baby Emily seems to love almost everything she eats so far! She just might be my saving grace in this family yet!
For the Pesto sauce, I usually just buy a pre-made one from the refrigerated section of the grocery store but, I have made my own as well. The homemade one is great if you have the time (Basil, olive oil, parmesan cheese, & pine nuts all pureed up together).
The ingredients for the dinner are:
2 or 3 medium sized chicken breasts (if they're thick, pound them or slice them in half to make thinner)
1/4 to 1/3 cup of pesto sauce (divided in 2 portions)
3 cups of pasta (penne or bowtie works best)
1/4 cup of mozzerella cheese (or more if you want)
*All amounts are approximate -feel free to adjust the amounts to your family size
Spray a 9 x 13 glass baking dish or pan with cooking spray. Spread a small amount of pesto sauce in the spots where you will place chicken breasts. Place chicken breasts in pan & put more pesto sauce on top of chicken breasts and then sprinkle mozzerella cheese over tops of each.
Cover w/foil & bake at 375 for 25-30 min. Remover foil cover for last 5 min. & broil on low to brown the tops slightly. Meanwhile boil your noodles and toss in a seperate bowl with remaining pesto sauce. Serve chicken breast on top of noodles for each serving. For young kids, you have to cut the chicken up for them. Some people like to sprinkle grated parmeson on top as well. You can also mix some of the grated mozzerella in the pasta bowl too if you like.
This is a quick, easy and tasty meal. A salad goes nicely on the side & rolls or garlic bread do too. You can also add small grape or cherry tomatoes to the pasta as well.
Now, for babies (11 mos. & up), I just puree up a portion of the pesto chicken w/a little extra mozzerella and use it in a couple of different ways. I mix it with a tiny pasta like "ditalini" (a tiny tube like pasta) and let the baby eat it w/her hands or sometimes I spread it like a paste on thin bread or make a quesadilla with it. I take half of a tortilla (I use whole wheat but, flour or corn is fine too) and spread the mixture on half of the tortilla half & fold it over & microwave it for about 30 seconds. Then I cut it w/a pizza cutter into bite size pieces. Voila! There you have it! Sometimes I even make sandwiches out of leftovers. I make a panini w/the chicken & a tomato slice and a slice of fresh mozzerella (if I have it on hand) and I spread a littl extra pesto on inside the bread. Bon Appetit!

Cumming Aquatic Center -Part 2

Okay, here's what I've realized since I first blogged about the new Cumming Aquatic Center......
It's just too dang hard with 2 young kids! This is mainly because Emily just turned 1 yr & she walks & she just wants to do all this stuff that she can't do and I have to stay on top of her at all times. I couldn't really enjoy myself with my 4 yr old like I did before. Sad to say, I'll probably just take the 4yr old alone next time. Emily did love it though!

Mini-Golf in Roswell

There is a new Mini-Golf place in Roswell off Hwy 9 (where it intersects Holcomb Bridge Rd) called "The Fringe". It's actually a renovated version of one that was there previously in the late 1990's-early 2000's. It's really nice and really cute too! They have a pirate ship course and an old west town course (which also features mimi versions of old Roswell landmarks). Both are really neat. They even have a small putting green where you can practice before you play. They also have a sno-cone stand right outside next to the courses for a cool treat while you're playing or after. The cost is $7 for adults & $5 for kids 4-12. Kids 3 & under are free & there is a reduced rate if you want to play both courses. They have a nice new (also renovated) movie theater there as well with pretty good prices ($9 for adults).

New Cumming Aquatic Center

The new Cumming Aquatic center finally opened and we went there while my Sis-in-law & nephew were visiting us. Everyone I know has been awaiting the opening of this place. It's nice for people who don't have a neighborhood pool or who need more water activities than just swimming in the pool. We went about a week or so after it opened. A friend of mine that went when they first opened said that they waited over an hour and they still didn't get in because the wait was too long. Luckily for us, there was no wait & it was not too crowded. This was a Tues. afternoon which makes me think that this will be my preferred day to go again. I took my 4 yr. old son but, left the the baby at home napping w/Daddy.

Well, I'll start off with what I liked about this place....

It was a good size, not too big or too small. It has a zero edge pool with some little water fountains sticking up at the water's edge which babies would enjoy. A baby can actually sit & play in the water without fear of being washed away by a big wave (unlike the beach!). They have a play structure w/2 small slides & stationary water guns (more like canons) for little kids to play on & it's right in the middle of the pool. There is also a large dunking bucket that gets filled with water & dumps every so often & splashes all over anyone standing under it or the nearby vicinity. My son Cameron loved this! When asked later about what he liked best he said "Getting dunked!". Cameron & his cousin Christian would wait for it to fill & stand under it & go crazy when it dunked all over them. Oh to be little again! Simple pleasures!

The pool is shallow enough so that little kids can stand & play. Cameron was so happy when he realized he could stand in the pool (unlike at home in our neighborhood pool where the water is over his head) and as it gets shallower he could sit. At one point he said excitedly "Look, I'm walking on my knees!". There is a lazy river that is not so lazy. It is small but, moves fast. It's actually a lot of fun and there's a section where water pours down on you & sprays up from below too. Cameron went crazy for this & we went thru so many times! He's not tall enough to stand in this part though so, he had to hold onto me the whole time. Part of the time he just rode on my back. There is a large corkscrew water slide which you have to be 48 in. tall to go on so, Cameron couldn't do that one but, he didn't seem to mind. I however, went on it a few times & it is fun! My Sis-in-law went with her son a few times & when he wanted to go some more, I volunteered to go too. The line was usually pretty short (10 or 11 people) & it moves pretty fast so, you can go multiple times w/out a lot of waiting. They have beach chairs but, it's really hard to get one because even when people aren't sitting in them, they have their towels & other stuff on them. They do have some grassy areas where you could lay down a blanket or towels though. They have covered picnic tables which is great for a picnic lunch or snack. They also have vending machines in case you need a drink or snack.

What I didn't like was.....
The water in the leisure pool is waist deep at it's highest point. This is great for little kids but, not so much for adults. The lazy river is fun but a kid under the age of 6 can't go in by themselves because this is the only section that's actually deeper. The only pool that you can swim in (in the traditional sense) is indoors & mainly used for instruction & team sports. They need more chairs because they have a lot of unused space to accomodate them & there is definitely not enough chairs. Other than that, I give this place a big thumbs up!