{"id":1196,"date":"2014-03-10T15:21:26","date_gmt":"2014-03-10T20:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kristendembroski.com\/?p=1196"},"modified":"2014-03-10T15:21:26","modified_gmt":"2014-03-10T20:21:26","slug":"new-years-resolution-check-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.kristendembroski.com\/?p=1196","title":{"rendered":"New Years Resolution Check-In"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s been 2 months, and that’s a great time to check in on the ole’ New Years Resolutions. How are yours going? By March, many people I talk to can’t even remember the resolutions they made. That is why I am so glad I wrote mine down! Either this will help me to stay accountable and on track, or make for certain embarrassment when there is tangible proof that I failed!<\/p>\n

This weekend, I was able to check 2 things off my list (You can view my full list here<\/a>):<\/p>\n

11. Use our wedding china
\n14. Cook an entire dinner for my family<\/p>\n

These were important goals for me because a) We’ve had our wedding china for 4.5 years and they still have stickers on them! b) I have never cooked a complete meal from start to finish. Might as well practice on my family, right? And since I’ve been doing so much cooking lately to educate myself, I figured this would be a true test of my skills.<\/p>\n

Well I am happy to report that it went perfectly. It was a LOT of planning and preparing ahead of time, but I learned a lot, too. For starters, I washed all of the china, crystal, silver, (and yep, removed the stickers!) and practiced setting the table:<\/p>\n

\"Fancy<\/a><\/p>\n

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Doesn’t my house look like Downton Abbey? It made me happy \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Then I had to clean my entire house from top to bottom. And I mean I cleaned thoroughly – up to Mom’s standards!<\/p>\n

\"Clean<\/a><\/p>\n

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I remember at one point, my husband says, “This is so much work to entertain people! Next time, let’s just go to their house” Haha!<\/p>\n

I also did all of the grocery shopping and food prep. The meal I planned to make couldn’t be cooked ahead of time, but I did wash, cut, measure, and set out all of the ingredients.<\/p>\n

\"Family<\/a><\/p>\n

The menu:<\/p>\n

Appetizers:<\/span>
\n* Cheese plate – bacon cheddar and sharp cheddar cheese with crackers
\n* Fruit plate – strawberries and blackberries
\n* Veggies – green peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots
\n* Stuffed mushrooms – recipe here<\/a>, but I substituted sausage in for crab
\n* Baked Sweet Potato Chips – sliced with a mandolin, then shake in a bag with olive oil and sea salt. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, then leave them in the oven while it cools so they crisp up.
\n* Dipping sauces – chipotle dip, balsamic ketchup, and spinach dip
\n* Mixed nuts<\/p>\n

Dinner:<\/span>
\n* Veggie Salad – spinach, avocado, red onion, tomato
\n* Thai Pad See Ew – chicken, broccoli, carrot, egg, and coconut aminos
\n* Rice & Bread to pass<\/p>\n

Dessert:<\/span>
\n* 2-layer Chocolate cake with raspberry filling and vanilla buttercream frosting
\n* Lingonberries
\n* Ice cream<\/p>\n

\"Cake<\/a><\/p>\n

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March is definitely a big birthday month in our family, so we celebrated my brother’s 24th birthday, my birthday, and my late grandmother’s birthday. It is also birthday month for my brother-in-law and mother-in-law!<\/p>\n

We had a very good time, and I would be happy to do it again. I love my family, and I’ll make any excuse to hang out with them!<\/p>\n

\"My<\/a><\/p>\n

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