Life in a Nutshell

"Uh-oh!" (New favorite word btw)

"I should really pick these up"

"Yum! This should go quickly!"

"Wait... Only 7 chips per serving..."


"I'm just gonna push the rest of them under here for later."

Baby Owen

A BIG CONGRATS to our dear friends, Dennis and Teresa. On Friday, June 26th they welcomed sweet baby Owen to the world.

Isn't he the cutest lil thing?

D&T, you guys are going to be fantastic parents. I'm sure in the few days you've had with him, you've already shown that you are. We can't wait to get up to Buffalo and meet him! XOXO.

kiss me, kate!

Today is the final day of the kate spade sample sale! Definitely worth checking out! She's offering an additional 30% off sale prices and a flat $5 shipping rate. Some really cute stuff still left at amazing prices!

LOL

I couldn't help but laugh out loud when flipping through the July issue of Gourmet Mag today I came across an article entitled:

"Summer Savvy: Make pie dough and homemade crackers part of your routine."

Ha! A routine that includes homemade crackers?! Seriously? If I time it just right, maybe I can fit that in between vacuuming lunch crumbs off the floor and running down to the basement to move the laundry to the dryer for the second time today. And if I'm really savvy, I may even get to use the bathroom.

Homemade crackers...who are these people?

Dinner Tonight

Roasted Zucchini and Tomato Pasta has become the perfect summer go-to at our house and comes to you courtesy of Ms. Martha.

Ingredients

Serves 4 to 6

• 2 1/2 pounds zucchini, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 pounds plum tomatoes, cut into 3/4-inch chunks
• 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 1 pound long fusilli, or linguine
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

Directions

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. On rimmed baking sheet, toss zucchini, tomatoes, and garlic with 5 tablespoons oil; season with salt and pepper. Spread into single layer; roast until zucchini is lightly browned, 20 to 25 minutes.
2. In large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente, about 12 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water. Return pasta to pot. Toss with remaining tablespoon oil; cover.
3. Pour reserved pasta water onto baking sheet of cooked vegetables; scrape with a wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Stir vegetables and juices into pasta. Add parsley and Parmesan; toss to combine. Serve with more Parmesan.

Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium

After hearing many rave reviews, we decided to check out the Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium during Riz's week off from work. Although we had already snagged memberships to the Botantical Gardens, Children's Museum and Aviary, we knew we would have to add the Zoo and Aquarium to our ever-growing list before even stepping foot inside.

I'm doing my best to pose for a darling mother-son photo, but Manu decides to keep it real and kick me in the face.

Manu spots a kitty. This is my "I'm smiling but I'm not sure I want you to be calling that kitty over here " face. Note the tension in my neck.

These two extra large kitties sure were amazing to watch but I was kinda nervous about their proximity to us .


Especially given that I could easily rest my arms on the fence that was supposed to keep us separated.


I'm usually not a fraidy cat (ha!) and I'm all about trying to recreate an open, natural habit, but it was lunch time. I also overheard someone say that they each eat about 10 pounds of food a day. Hmm. One twenty pound baby divided by two lions.... moving on.


This pretty kitty was behind a wall.


Too into his salmon lunch to even notice us.


Along with our furry friends there was of course the scaly, bumpy, creepy friends. This guy held so incredibly still I don't think Manu even noticed he was there.

Unfortunately, our camera's battery konked out on us by the time we made our way to the aquarium where we watched in awe as a pair of polar bears swim around and over us; twirling and turning sommersaults like they were light as can be. Super cool. Definitely have to make another trip back to capture that one.

Back at home, Manu was able to get up close and personal with a bear more his size (Thanks, Osman!).