5 years!

The great thing about living in a very desirable area is that there are always friends visiting. David had a college buddy vacationing in Coronado and my BFF is visiting for a whole week. It's great to have them around, although there never seems to be enough time to really catch up.

Here are some pictures of the kiddos this last week.

Nathan is not doing the chicken dance he is pretending the be a stingray.

Everett and his little friend Jack. :)

Last Friday David and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary. I cannot believe that its already been 5 YEARS!!! I am truly blessed to have such a great husband and family. Thanks to my mom, we were able to go out to dinner and enjoy our anniversary, although dinner didn't happen until 9:30pm for us. Still, it was nice to get dressed up and have an incredibly delicious meal.

Favorite New Recipe: Grilled Shrimp Salad

This recipes was inspired by Sammy's Woodfire Pizza's Grilled Shrimp Salad.
One night David and I decided we wanted one of our favorite salads at Sammy's and realized that this salad would cost us almost $20. I thought that was ridiculous so I figured that I would rather make the salad myself then pay someone else to make it and in the end probably not even have enough to fill both of us up.

Grilled Garlic and Herb Shrimp

1 pound of large shrimp (21-25 per pound) peeled and deveined .... I use the 2lb.frozen bag from Costco and only use half for this recipe

4 teaspoons ground paprika
4 tablespoons fresh minced garlic
4 teaspoons Italian seasoning blend
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon black pepper
4 teaspoons dried basil leaves
4 tablespoons brown sugar, packed

Whisk together all ingredients except shrimp until thoroughly blended. Stir in shrimp, and toss to evenly coat, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes or over night.

Preheat outdoor grill for med-high.

Skewer shrimp. 4-5 shrimp per skewer stick. I use metal skewers and oil them before "stickin" the shrimp. If you use the bamboo skewers don't forget to soak them for at least 10 minutes before "stickin" your shrimp on them or they will burn quickly on the grill.

Place shrimp on preheated grill and cook, turning once, until opaque in the center. 3-5 minutes per side.

Basil Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 clove of garlic (or more if you like)
1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon of finely chopped fresh basil
salt & pepper to taste

Whisk together in a small bowl and refrigerate to let the flavors meld (sp?). P.S. I throw everything in a magic bullet or small food processor instead of whisking myself.

Salad

5-10 oz of mixed greens (I use the however much is in the prewashed bags)
1 red bell pepper sliced
tomatoes
3 green onions
bunch of cilantro
feta cheese
roasted sunflower seeds

Chop and toss with vinaigrette.

Top with Grilled Shrimp and enjoy!!!!

Catching Up

It's now been 3 months since moving back down to San Diego from El Dorado Hills and as much as I miss my home and friends up north and I am quickly getting settled into super surburbia here. There is soooooo much to do here. We have membership/ annual passes to Sea World, Wild Animal Park and the San Diego Zoo and are definitely getting our monies worth. Nathan is fully aware of who Shamu is and feels as he is part whale himself. We didn't realize we were raising a little marine biologist. He loves sharks, dolphins and whales (of course). And as much time as we spend at these various parks we are spending an equal amount of time at the beach too.

Dino Mountain at the Wild Animal Park







Evening at the La Jolla Beach

Great Idea!

So, I decided to start this blog, with inspiration from a friend, to keep you all posted with what's happening in the Shaieb household. Hope you enjoy it.

We recently had some professional pictures taken of us by a great local photographer. These pictures were taken at the Old Poway Park not to far from us. She got some great pictures despite how difficult it is to get our little 2 year old to smile.