The Little Mermaid

The Pleasure Guild of Nationwide Children's Hospital put on their 61st annual production, Disney's The Little Mermaid, over the weekend! The kids and I were lucky to attend with Nana and little Olivia. It was such a wonderful show! 

Ariel, King Triton's youngest daughter, wishes to pursue the human Prince Eric in the world above, bargaining with the evil sea witch, Ursula, to trade her tail for legs. But the bargain is not what it seems, and Ariel needs the help of her colorful friends, Flounder the fish, Scuttle the seagull and Sebastian the crab to restore order under the sea. This fishy fable will capture your heart with its irresistible songs, including "Under the Sea," "Kiss the Girl" and "Part of Your World."

Cecilia's favorite Disney princess just so happens to be Ariel so she was on cloud 9! If I had to guess, this is probably why Nana thought to purchase tickets a few months ago. Really, it isn't surprising that Ceci (pronounced CC...we never intended for her to be anything other than Cecilia so when people started calling her C-C we just shortened the first part. I really wish I gave this some thought a decade ago and went with CeeCee. I will blame first-year parent exhaustion but I really didn't think a nickname would stick.) I digress. It isn't surprising that our drama-filled, lover of music, and the one always pushing the boundaries has a favorite princess who loves to sing and is also pushing the boundaries...oh, and she wears a bikini so that's a win in Ceci's book. A match made in heaven! 

The actress who played Ariel was only 17 years old! She had a beautiful voice and was fun to watch on stage. What was most surprising was that she held her own on stage with the famous Nina West who I was thrilled to finally see perform! Nina West as Ursula the Sea Monster was perfection! 

We grabbed lunch at Conadado before heading to the theater. There are not a lot of options for dining downtown near the theaters that I consider kid-friendly that are open on a Saturday afternoon. This was not our first choice but it ended up being a good one. Our kiddos love a good taco and guacamole! 

The Palace Theater is a smaller theater compared to the Ohio Theater a couple blocks away. While it is beautiful, it just doesn't hold a candle to the elegance that is the Ohio Theater. I did adore the sea blue color of the ceiling. This is one of my favorite colors and I am working to incorporate more of this color palate into our home. 

The Pleasure Guild is a volunteer organization focused on raising money for Nationwide Children's Hospice and Palliatative Centers. I love that we got to see an amazing performance in the historic and beautiful Palace Theater all while giving back to a wonderful cause. 

We are already looking forward to next year's performance of Mama Mia! 

"Super Bowl" Sunday Supper: Sausage & Peppers

Our favorite Steelers aren't playing in the Super Bowl this year but we are enjoying a Pittsburgh-style, Dodd family favorite for dinner. Ten years ago for Super Bowl 43, the Steelers were playing and I insisted on making a themed-meal so I tried out this recipe for Sausage & Peppers. We aren't from Pittsburgh so it's possible this isn't really even a thing. I have no idea nor where I got the recipe but I wrote it down on a recipe card and have made it every year since! In fact, every year I wonder why I don't make it more often. It's that good! This one definitely goes in the cookbook I am writing (more on that later!). 

Sausage & Peppers

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 large onions
• 2 green bell peppers
• 2 red bell peppers
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 lbs Italian sausage (mild and/or hot)
• 1 jar marinara
• 1 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes
• parsley, basil, salt & pepper
• Hoagie buns

1. Heat a dutch oven over medium heat, brown sausage links and remove.

2. Add oil and butter to the oven to melt followed by onions, peppers and garlic. Cook until onions get soft (5-7 minutes). 

3. Return sausage to oven and add in marinara, tomatoes, and parsley/basil. (I used fresh basil I had on hand and Italian seasoning.)

4. Cover dutch oven and lower heat to medium-low. 

5. Simmer for one hour.

6. Serve in a hoagie bun with or without cheese on top. 

We always have plenty leftover so I will serve the leftovers with rigatoni later in the week. 

Hope everyone is enjoying the game or the commercials!