Dana Burland

If you were here for dinner last week you’d have seen a big batch of chicken meatballs with roasted red pepper sauce and the easiest pasta dinner ever. So easy I’m kicking myself I didn’t get into it sooner. The chicken meatballs from Pinch Of Yum are a Cam and fam favorite. I like that they’re so  fast to make, cook without any monitoring and that my sneaky addition of chopped spinach has gone undetected by the boys in the house. I served them up with a modified version of Pioneer Woman’s Roasted Red Pepper Sauce once and this has accidentally become The Way to eat them around here. Related to that mentioned modification: I use MUCH less butter/olive oil, often forget the chicken stock and add MUCH less heavy cream. I really struggle loving PW for how much excess she adds where it seems so unnecessary. Sometimes I cook up pasta with the chicken meatballs and sauce, other times it’s just meatballs and sauce. Either way I sit back in parental glory as I watch C devour chic...

Special announcement! Special announcement! I’m pregnant! You may already know this if you’re family, friends or coworkers. You also might already know this if you’ve seen me lately. Unlike this time last pregnancy, it’s a little more obvious a little earlier something is going on. We found out we were expecting the week before Mother’s Day, which made celebrating my second Mother’s Day feel extra, extra special. I finished my first trimester right at the start of July. It’s true, the second time around it feels like this is all going by much faster, but I suppose that’s in help to a very speedy toddler we have running around the house. We’re really, really, really thrilled. Thrilled like last time, but different, because the newness factor isn’t there and we can comprehend what this means much more. We’re a bit terrified, too. Because now that newness factor isn’t there! We know with better certainty what’s coming, and simultaneously have no idea what’s coming because we’ve...

Wahoo, our little boy is 2! This birthday felt like no surprise. C’s a walking (running), talking, joking, tumbling (somersaulting), funny, kind and smart toddler. He already seemed 2 to me. Then again it wasn’t long ago we brought this 6-pound squirmier home from the hospital. It’s wild to think how much he’s grown in a short period of time, and a very accomplishing feeling too. B and I have had a long on our plate/minds the last few weeks, and the next few weeks to come. This weekend has been long booked with must-attend engagements unrelated to C’s birthday. It felt me feeling like his day wasn’t going to get the glitter and jazz it deserves. I’m happy to report we pulled off a great day for C. He blissfully, and rightfully!, knew nothing about mom/dad’s stress levels. Two days before his birthday I hung pennant flags all around the house—on the mantle, on top of built-in cabinets, over every walkway/archway on the main floor. This , in case you’re looking for it, is what...

Let’s always have July 4th on a Thursday so we can roll it into a 4 day weekend, ok? We had family in town staying with us for the long holiday weekend and had so much, exhausted-every-night, kinda fun. On Thursday morning we walked down to the Cascade 4th of July parade. It was the first time we’ve been in town to go and we loved it, even if C was a bit scared of the loud fire trucks. We played in the backyard, ran through the sprinklers, tossed toys around in the kiddy pool. One morning B and I snuck away while the rest of the crew went to the GR airport observation park, a new favorite activity, to watch airplanes take off. We hit up the local splash pad which C just recently has mustered up enough courage to find exhilarating, calling the fountains “big rain!” A group of us snuck out at nap time another day to Wax Poetic to make candles, which was both more challenging (choosing scents) and easy/fun than I expected. We ventured over to Millennium Park beach one mornin...