Snapshots of Life: Food and Family: Spinach Artichoke Bites and Joseph's Medical School Graduation!!

On the plate: Spinach artichoke bites for a gathering of some wonderful women :)

Soundtrack to cook to: Bruno Mars' Unorthodox Jukebox....seriously addicted to listening to the song Treasure. We have a mini dance party in our house when it comes on. Go ahead...picture it...we love to cut a rug and get down with our bad selves' in this house.

I was invited to a small gathering of some really great women that I used to work with when I was teaching. It was so great to catch up, gossip, share child rearing advice (I call it "survival"), and nosh on some really great apps and sip (guzzle) some wine.
For some reason, I was feeling overly ambitious and volunteered to make a warm appetizer for the get together. I remembered seeing this special on the Rachael Ray show where she made lots of appetizers using a mini muffin tin. Here's a recipe for spinach artichoke bites that is INCREDIBLY easy and a huge crowd pleaser:

In a large bowl, mix the following ingredients:

1, 10 oz box of frozen spinach that has been thawed and drained of all water
4 oz cream cheese, cubed (I used neufchatel - less calories. Put it in the freezer for 1 hour so the cream cheese will be easy to cut)
2, 14 oz cans of artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 1/2 cups Bisquick mix
1 cup skim milk
1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated

Spray some nonstick spray on your mini muffin tins and place the
mixture into the tins.
*I filled the entire pan and still had some leftover - this mixture makes a lot.

Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.

Ta-daaaa!! Each bite tasted like a deliciously gooey and cheesy
bite of spinach artichoke dip, without all of the mess!! So ridiculously good.

On May 28, 2013, Joseph and I attended his graduation dinner. We enjoyed a lovely evening with his fellow classmates and their families. Thanks for watching the boys, Elias and Linda!

Mama's goin' out tonight!! Me, rockin' my DVF. ;)
I don't get out much, so this was very exciting and had
to be documented.

The graduates were asked to stand. :)

The MD/PhD
graduating class of 2013! Congrats guys!

On May 30, 2013, my amazingly handsome, intelligent, and talented husband graduated from medical school!! After eight long years with a PhD in the middle, he completed this amazing feat and we are all so incredibly proud of him.

Here's Joseph in his graduation attire on the steps of Harvard Medical School.

Alexander and Joseph at the luncheon before the ceremony.

We got to the luncheon a little late and it was super
crowded, so Joseph's family ate at a table inside
while Alexander and I noshed our lunch on a bench
outside.
Here's Alexander, Joseph, and Me at the ceremony, before
it got super hot.

Joseph's family came to share in the celebration! From left to right is Joseph's:
Aunt Nelly, Uncle Shengyen, Father - Elias, Grandmother - Lau Lau, and Mother - Linda

It was pretty hot that day (~85 degrees F), so Joseph
took off his cap and gown to cool off a little bit.
Here's Alexander, Joseph, Elias, and Lau Lau in the
graduation tent.

Joseph, his mother Linda, grandmother Lau Lau,
aunt Nelly, and William at the medical school graduation.

The beginning of the graduation ceremony.

There's Joseph, walking into the graduation tent!

I had to go in and out of the tent multiple times, because both boys were really cranky, wiggly, and making a lot of noise. Despite everyone's best efforts to help me out, the boys just wanted mommy...and only mommy. So, I tried to take pictures as much as possible while I was inside the tent.

Joseph, crossing the stage and getting his well-deserved diploma!

Woo hoo!!! Congratulations, Dr. Dr. Joseph!!

So proud of this guy!

Joseph's fellow classmate, Dr. Peter Miller,
Alexander, and Dr. Joseph, celebrating together.

Elias, Alexander, Joseph, and Shengyen after the ceremony.

Linda, Alexander, Joseph, and Lau Lau after the ceremony.

Everyone was very happy and proud of Joseph.

Elias, Linda, Alexander, Joseph, Lau Lau, and Me after the ceremony.

Ahhhhh! Air conditioning! We were all in a much better mood,
standing in the cafeteria cooling off.
Lau Lau, Nelly, William, Alexander, Joseph, Linda, Me, Elias,
and Shengyen.

After the ceremony, we all went back home and rested for about two hours. Then, we went to EVOO, one of our favorite restaurants in Cambridge, and met up with some of Joseph's parents' friends for dinner.

Joseph with his special graduation menu.

Happy HMS Graduation, Joseph!

Alexander and Lau Lau, coloring and drawing
while they were waiting for the food.

William, grabbing at Elias' mouth and entertaining himself
while Joseph and I shoveled the food into our mouths.

On May 31, 2013, Joseph had another graduation ceremony with his fellow HST graduates. Thankfully this was indoors and air conditioned!! Unfortunately, it was a smaller venue and even the smallest "peep" was very loud. Thus, I spent most of my time playing with the boys in the lobby during the ceremony.
Once Joseph was getting ready to walk across the stage, his aunt Nelly ran into the room, scooped me and the boys up and dashed back into the ceremony. Joseph was able to cross the stage with both of the boys in his arms. What a special moment. :)

Lau Lau, Nelly Shengyen, Joseph, Linda, Elias, and Alexander
at Joseph's HST (Health Science and Technology) graduation ceremony.

Joseph, William, and Alexander waiting to cross the stage.

Alexander was protesting because his "Cat in the Hat" episode on
my iPhone was interrupted so that he could walk across the stage
with Joseph.

Alexander, Joseph, and William, crossing the stage together.

Alexander got to hold the business card holder that Joseph received.
That managed to keep him quiet while they were reading about Joseph.

He wanted to put the business card holder in his pocket.

And there they go! Woo hoo! Another graduation ceremony
under Joseph's belt and thankfully no meltdowns on stage. :)

Congratulations, Dr. Dr. Daddy! The beautiful men in my life. :)

Joseph, Alexander, Elias, Linda, and Lau Lau at the reception.

Elias, Lau Lau, Alexander, Joseph, William, and Me at the reception.

Lau Lau walking by a pretty cool sculpture in that building.

On June 2, we had a small housewarming/graduation party. We were very blessed to be able to have Joseph's family come, as well as a few of our close friends and their families. It was so great that we were able to celebrate such a momentous occasion.

William and Lau Lau (or "Tai Tai" to the boys (great grandmother)).

Joseph's super cool graduation cake that my sister commissioned
from her favorite cake lady. I saw this design on Pinterest and thought
it would be perfect for Joseph's graduation. I asked that the colors
be Harvard's crimson for the shirt.