This post is sponsored by La Crema Winery.

After an incredibly busy past few months, I'm really enjoying a slow holiday season and have been planning a super low-key Christmas at home with my little family. I've always loved the idea of doing something non-traditional for Christmas dinner (my family has been known to do seafood on Christmas Eve), and if you know me at all you know my love for Chinese food knows no bounds.

We could always go super easy and order takeout, but I started thinking it might be fun to make our own as a family, so I put together a simple menu of chicken chow mein, beef and broccoli, and some delicious crispy egg rolls to get the whole thing started. Stop by the La Crema blog today to get the two entree recipes, but keep reading here to learn how to make your own egg rolls! (And don't forget to put a few bottles of La Crema Sonoma Coast Chardonnay in the fridge to top it all off.)

Ingredients: 

• 2 carrots, julienned
• 10 ounces of mushrooms, sliced (I like regular ol' button mushrooms but you could use shiitake)
• About half of a small cabbage, shredded
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
• 1-2 green onions, chopped 
• 1-2 handfuls of fresh bean sprouts (optional)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• Spring roll or egg roll wrappers
• Cooking oil (olive or canola), for sautéing veggies and frying the rolls

Instructions: 

1. In a large pan, sauté garlic, ginger, and green onions together in a little oil for 1-2 minutes. Add the carrots and mushrooms and sauté for another 4-5 minutes, or until the mushrooms are browned slightly.
2. Add the soy sauce and sesame oil, stirring well to combine. Add the cabbage and cook for another 2-3 minutes, or until the cabbage has wilted slightly. Remove the entire mixture from the pan and set aside.
3. To assemble the egg rolls, take a wrapper and lay it down flat. Spoon 1-2 tablespoons of the veggie mixture onto the wrapper and begin to roll from one side, tucking the edges in as you wrap the roll up. Use a little water on your fingers to seal the whole thing. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.
4. Add more oil to the pan and heat over medium-high heat. Fry each egg roll for 1-2 minutes per side, or until the wrappers are golden-brown. Serve immediately with your favorite spicy Asian dipping sauce (there's a spicy peanut one at Trader Joe's that I like) or a mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil, and hot chili oil. 

Wishing you and yours a happy, healthy, and delicious holiday this year.

We've been home from the hospital for almost 3 weeks now and we're slowly but surely falling into a daily routine--I wake up early with the baby and let Rob sleep in a bit since he stays up with her when I go to bed, I nurse her in the nursery and if possible we go back to sleep for a while in the bedroom before heading out to the living room for more nursing for her, a latte for me, and a few episodes of The Crown.

Ender sleeps in his crate and usually wants to come out at 8:00, so I let him out and he runs around the yard for a while, then comes in for breakfast and we all cuddle on the couch. Sophie usually falls asleep again and I know I could probably take a mid-morning nap or get some work done, but I always end up holding her instead. Once Rob is up we usually make some breakfast, watch more shows (we're currently loving Difficult People on Hulu), and eventually get outside for a walk with the pup and Sophie in the stroller.

The days are long but they fly by at the same time, and every Tuesday I can't believe our baby is another week older. As the hours become days and the days become weeks, I've discovered a handful of things I either didn't know I needed or didn't know I would depend on so much once we got home from the hospital--and here they are:

• This nursing bra is the comfiest and specially designed to wear while you sleep. I bought one but need at least 3 or 4 more.
• I bought this witch hazel to make padsicles for when I got home from the hospital, but it turned out to have alcohol in it so I decided against it. Now I'm using it as intended--as a toner on my face--and totally loving it. They do have an alcohol-free formula if you're looking for one.
• These 4-ounce baby bottles have been a life saver. Sophie is cluster feeding and my boobs are having a hard time keeping up, so I've been pumping and letting Rob feed her a bottle once or twice a day. It's made a huge difference. I always knew I wanted to pump so he could feed her, I just didn't know we'd be doing it so soon. Either way, I'm happy I had them ready to go.
• I got some of this stuff in a Birchbox and used it the other day after I washed my hair. It's so amazing and my hair feels incredible, which is saying a lot since I've just been wearing it up in a top knot most days. I don't usually buy full sizes of stuff I sample but I might be purchasing a bigger bottle soon.
• We thought it'd be fun to buy a nice espresso machine so we could make lattes while Rob is on paternity leave, but I had no idea how much joy this crazy thing would bring to my life. I really look forward to making my coffee every morning, which is important when you've only gotten 4 hours of sleep.
• Nipple cream. Enough said, right? I like that there's nothing weird in this one. I've also been using this luxurious hand cream at night because it smells amazing and my hands are super dry from washing them way more than usual.

If you have any to add, I'd love to hear them!

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Happy Wednesday! My mom got here on Friday and it's been so nice having her here to help us out with keeping the house clean and the laundry under control (plus she's gotten lots of Sophie snuggles in while I've been able to take a few naps).

Life is looking so different already, so I thought I'd share a list of what I've been up to lately:

• Going to bed as early as possible--Rob takes Sophie from about 9 PM until she wakes up screaming to be fed between midnight and 1 AM, which means I get 3 uninterrupted hours of sleep before we're up every few hours with her. I never thought I'd be so thankful for such a tiny amount of shut-eye, but I really am.
• Making lattes every morning, sometimes as early as 5:30 AM. Sophie and I are morning people, what can I say? (Although I think at this point she's both a morning person and a night owl.)
• Not walking Ender as much as I thought we would--I'm having some really terrible back and hip pain which is making getting around a real challenge. The past few days I've been spending as much time on the couch as I can.
• Feeling ridiculously thankful for Rob's incredible family benefits and lengthy paternity leave.
• Becoming really good friends with my breast pump--I had no idea making bottles would be so satisfying (especially because it means Rob can feed the baby while I snooze a little longer).
• Cruising through a few new-to-me shows on Netflix in the middle of the night: Friends from College and The Big Family Cooking Showdown.
• So. Much. Laundry.

That's it for now! What have you been up to lately? Hope things are going well for all of you out in the real world!