Chicken Parmigiana

Cooking has become a favorite hobby of mine and having 2 boys in the house really helps inspire me to continually try new things.  Both Finn and Shaun have pretty broad palates and so I'm usually at liberty to try new and different meals.  I'd been eyeing this recipe lately for Chicken Parmigiana from the Tyler Ultimate show on Food Network (Tyler Florence).  I love ordering this meal in restaurants but it has been so intimidating to try as a cook.  Part of my New Years Resolution was to stop being threatened by fabulous meals and to just try and make them.  They are not always as hard as you think!  

Finn and I made a quick trip to the grocery store to pick up a few items.  He munched on a free cookie from the bakery (a wonderful idea - thank you Safeway!) and I gathered up our list.  Afternoon naps are also a gift because it helped me prep the dinner without a little 13 month old attached to my legs.  After a quick throw together that evening - dinner was done. Both Shaun and I commented on how good it was and Finn ate probably an entire plateful!  No thanks to me, thanks to a great recipe from Tyler Florence.  The link to the recipe is below and I highly recommend this website as a great tool for recipe ideas.   I know that I'm going to be trying new recipes weekly and can't wait for the next great meal!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chicken-parmigiana-recipe/index.html

13 months

This picture of Finn cracks me up. We received a wonderful bag o' goodies (clothes and shoes)from some great friends. We tried this Halloween costume on Finn one night. Needless to say he was not too excited about it.

Cutest little unhappy BumbleBee on the block!

Babies impersonate famous Da Vinci Painting - guess which one . . .

And while you're at it, play the "Where's Finn?" game.

birthday cake!!

Birthday Boy!

Even though Finn's birthday was a few weeks ago we wanted to post a few pictures and videos from this fun day. We had such a great time celebrating with friends and family. Finn had a blast opening presents and eating cake (see below). What a difference a year makes! Finn is walking/running everywhere! Mom and Dad are trying hard to keep up with him. This is such a wonderful stage of life for us. He is bringing us books to read on our laps, 'talking' on his phone, playing peek-a-boo, and growling like a scary monster (also known as Daddy). Can't wait to see what this next year brings!