St. Patrick's Day 2015

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Remember when forgetting to wear green meant you'd get a big ol' pinch? I sure do. I was terrified of that consequence when I was a kid, so I always remembered to wear green on St. Patrick's Day ... even if there isn't an ounce of Irish heritage in my blood.

Plus, I love an excuse to celebrate any holiday - big or small. Tory and I cobbled together some festive outfits to keep those random pinchers at bay. She doesn't own a lick of green clothing in her closet so thankfully Tory's not afraid to mix and match. She chose a navy blue dress with a (teal) t-shirt underneath and pink leggings. Teal is a close cousin of green, right? A plastic rainbow necklace finished her outfit.

Meals are an easy way to bring some festive cheer to any holiday. For breakfast, I made Tory and Aden shamrock-shaped pancakes with green sprinkles using a heart-shaped cookie cutter and a little imagination. Tory's a big fan of any food cut into the shape of something else, so she was excited. My jolly holiday spirit pretended not to hear her when she said "...but what I really wanted was flower (-shaped frozen) waffles," which is the same thing she eats for breakfast at least three times a week. Just humor me and eat these fun, festive shamrock pancakes I woke up 30 minutes early to make you from scratch, okay kid? Heh. This is real life.

After pre-school, Tory and I stopped by the grocery store to pick up ingredients for Irish Pot Pie and Lucky Charms Rice Krispie treats. Then, we spent the rest of the afternoon cooking and baking in the kitchen which is something we both really enjoy doing together. Tory's a big help rinsing vegetables, measuring ingredients and washing dishes, and teaching her how to cook and appreciate food is something that's so important to me. I'm still learning my way around the kitchen, so if cooking is a skill I can pass down to my children and spend quality time with them while we do it ... big WIN in my book. Aden decided to pull a St. Patrick's Day nap-strike so he was right there with us in the kitchen, though at 15 months old he was about as much help as you'd imagine.

This Irish Beef Stew / Pot Pie was really, really (really!) delicious. Good for St. Patrick's Day but really, perfect for any family dinner. I'm salivating over the idea of eating the leftovers for lunch today, and that's saying something -- I usually hate leftovers. This was a bit of a high-maintenance recipe to make; maybe suited better for a weekend vs. a random Tuesday because the beef stew required time to simmer on the stove-top before transforming into a pot pie that baked in the oven. Definitely worth the time and effort to make though. Yum!

Also quite tasty were these Lucky Charms Rice Krispie treats for dessert. I knew my sweets-loving husband would appreciate them!

In past years Andi's mom has invited our family over for a traditional St. Patrick's Day corned beef and cabbage dinner, so I decided to return the favor this year and invite Janie and Jim over to our house for Irish Pot Pie. They stopped by after work and we all celebrated St. Patrick's Day together.

The perfect ending to a great holiday.