Greek Turkey Burgers

It's been a long time since I posted a recipe post on here. Truth be told I got a bit lazy and haven't prepared many meals from scratch in a while. But the other week I decided to research some recipes and start preparing healthy, fresh meals for us again and I'm hoping to continue this throughout the year! 

One of my favorite recipes from the first week were these Greek Turkey Burgers. So easy to make and so delicious! The cucumber and mint sauce was to die for! 

Ingredients:

• 1lb lean Turkey
• 9oz frozen chopped spinach
• 1/4 cup fat-free plain yoghurt
• Pita bread halves
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tomato
• 1/2 cup fat-free plain yoghurt (for sauce)
• 1/2 cup chopped cucumber (for sauce)
• 2 tsp chopped fresh mint leaves (for sauce- I used mint sauce as I couldn't find any fresh leaves)
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice (for sauce)

Method:

1. Set oven to broil. In a medium bowl mix cucumber sauce ingredients together and refrigerate until ready to use.
2. Cook spinach as directed and cool slightly, drain well. In a large bowl mix cooked spinach, turkey, yoghurt, oregano, garlic salt and pepper. Shape into oval patties about 1/2 inch thick. Place patties on a baking tray under the broiler (about 5 inches from heat) for about 10-12 minutes, turning once. Ensure internal temperature is 165F. 
3. Place 2 tomato slices in each pita pocket; place burgers over tomato slices and top with sauce. 
4. Serve with a delicious salad.

And there you have it- simple, easy, healthy and delicious! 

A Week Away

Two weeks ago I received some really bad news and it ended up in an emergency trip back to England for me. I decided at the time that it would be better (and less expensive) for me to go alone and leave Calleigh here with Daddy. It was such a hard decision as I have never been away from Calleigh for that long before and I was really worried about travelling alone and how much I would miss Calleigh. I also felt really bad about going to England and not taking Calleigh for the families to see, I know everyone misses her so much and would have loved seeing her.

Well I'm happy to report the travelling went well and I found it so much easier to travel alone than I thought it would be. Calleigh gave me some of her ponies to take with me so we could be together. On the flight over I had the whole row to myself which was a dream! I was able to lie down and relax, it was amazing! 

The only problem I en counted was a last minute cancellation on my flight back from Newark to St Louis which resulted in a lot of sorting out to get on a different flight and an overnight stay at Newark (plus more expensive!) and another day until I was able to see my Calleigh beans!

It was really great to go back and see family again, even if the circumstances and the reason for my visit were not the best. I spent the week at my sisters with my mum, her boyfriend and their extremely large, excitable puppy Shadow! 

Because of the short notice of the trip I didn't take much money back with me but everything I did take of course got spent on treats to take back for Calleigh! I couldn't visit England without bringing her back some Pom Bears, which she got a taste for on our last visit in September. She also ended up with a load of ponies, turtles, magazines and clothes haha! 

It was hard to spend the time away from Calleigh and I did miss her so much, even though sometimes it was nice to just do what I wanted when I wanted without having to worry about Calleigh. I spoke to her and Daddy on FaceTime when I could, although there was a few days when she refused to talk to me because she was angry with me for not being with her! 

I think Paul enjoyed the whole experience too- he worked from home whilst I was away so he got to learn more about what Calleigh likes and her routines and got to spend a lot more time with her than usual. It was a real week of Daddy-Daughter bonding! 

Overall I really enjoyed my week away but was definitely ready to go back to my baby girl. When I got off that plane in St Louis and came walking down to baggage reclaim I saw Calleigh and Daddy standing there waiting for me and once Calleigh saw me she came running over shouting "Momma, I missed you, I missed you". It was so sweet! I couldn't have asked for a better welcome home! 

We stopped off for some food on the way back (I was starving!) and when we finally got home I walked into a little welcome home party they had set up with banners and balloons and presents for me. It was so nice!

Calleigh couldn't wait to get into my suitcase as she knew I had presents for her and she was so excited every time she saw something for her. "Oh wow" "Oh my goodness" "I love it" "All this for me" were just some of what she said bless her.

Rock The LunchBox Vox Box Review

I was so excited to be selected to review the Rock The LunchBox Vox Box from Influenster. Having such a picky eater it can be hard to find healthy foods that Calleigh will eat so I was really happy to have the chance to try out some goodies from some awesome brands!

Included in the box were coupons for Annie's pizza bagels, Annie's Bunny Grahams, Rudis, Applegate Half Time lunch packs and Honest Kids juice drinks.

 

Calleigh's favourite were the Annie's Bunny Grahams. I chose the Honey, Chocolate and Chocolate Chip mix and she loves them as a snack in between meals or as a side with some lunch. My favourite product was the mini pizza bagels- Calleigh is not a big pizza fan but I love them and find them great for a little something when you can't decide what to eat!

We used the Applegate Half-Time lunch kit when we went to the zoo. It was a kind of last minute decision as it was such a nice day and I didn't have time to make something before we left. I don't like buying Calleigh a meal when we are out in places as she very rarely eats it and it's not exactly cheap so this was great to grab on the go. She enjoyed the crackers and the cheese but didn't really touch the turkey.
The Honest drinks have been great too- Calleigh likes them and they are really handy for taking out with us when we are out and about.

We haven't yet had chance to use the Rudis English Muffins, they are in our freezer, but I know Calleigh enjoys English muffins for breakfast every now and again so I'm excited to try them on one of those days!

All in all I really, really loved this box! I love it when I can try new things with Calleigh and discovering new products is great!

I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

STL Auto Show

For something different to do last week we took Calleigh to the STL Auto Show. It was really nice to walk around and see all the new cars and Calleigh enjoyed getting in them! There were so many cars from every car brand you could think of!

I'm not a big car fan but my dad and Paul do like their cars and Calleigh has fun pretty much anywhere so it was nice to take her out. 

Afterwards we went to dinner at Olive Garden where Calleigh enjoyed a massive kids meal- she literally had more on her plate than I did!!  

It's great to be able to do things indoors when the weather is cold.

An Unseasonably Warm Day

On Monday we had some more beautiful weather and we actually managed to spend some quality time playing out in the garden for the first time since we moved in. 

Calleigh really enjoyed playing with all her outdoor toys that she hasn't seen since summer ended (which feels like ages ago, come back summer!)

I can't wait for the weather to get better so we can really make the most of the nice garden we have. I loved the decking at the other place but it really feels nice to have a level backyard and plenty of space for Calleigh to run about!