Fledglings

So, I admit... I have been glued to the nest lately. There is something so peaceful about watching the hummers go from eggs the size of tic-tacs to fledglings.


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So Much For An Early Spring...

Leaping In To My Day

Happy Leap Day

Today started off strange. My alarm went off at 7am... it's set for 5:45am and 6:01am. Not only did it go off at 7, but when I rolled over to shut the *censored* screeching off, the plug came out of the wall. The option to just lay there "9 more minutes" was taken away from me. Looking back, that was a good thing.

Later, I got a text from Elvis - he overslept. He got up at 6:04. Okay, it's only 19 minutes later than his usual, but it was enough to start his day behind. He made it to work on time, but that was mostly a stroke of luck.

We almost escaped February untouched by snow. Almost. To make up for lost flake-time, the 3-6 inches we were told we were getting has been bumped up to 6-10 inches. Let me tell you how thrilled I am about that.

Ya.... keep waiting, not going to happen!

I decided that the oven needed to be cleaned. Nothing tells you that dinner is ready like having the smoke detector go off. The other night, dinner cooked over and I had to spray the oven last night. I spend the morning with my head shoved in the oven. Literally. I am all of 5'2 and have the wingspan of a T-rex.

So, here I sit with sore arms, a hair style that looks as if I primped in a hurricane, and considering a life without baked items...

Ya... that's not going to happen either! (Although, I had thought about a NuWave oven in the past)

... In a Nutshell

I Don't Ask for Much...

Dear (God, Gods, Universe, Magical Spork of Glittery Goodness - I'm not all that picky)


 -- please grant me patience so I can deal with the people who annoy me because I know if I asked for strength, I'd beat them half to death...

FAIL !!!

STOP!!!! 

Before you continue reading this post... kindly put this on

I set out to post something... anything daily. It sounded like a good idea. Sounded realistic. 

What I didn't count on was actually having to live through the plague I felt coming on back on the 19th. It started off small, then started to drag other parts of my life with it. Sleep. Insomnia. Sleepy insomnia. A stomach with a mind of it's own. A migrane that would taunt me by acting as if it was going to leave me and then come back with friends.

Ever feel as if your body was staging a rebellion? Ever feel as if it's winning?

Well, that is why I was missing.

Indulging Myself...

Diva is staying at Shrugs tonight. Elvis will have the left-over chicken and rice casserole from last night. Me? I'm having pancakes. Maybe.

I'm watching the tv and I swear, every commercial is for some food or restaurant. I think there is something wrong because I actually said "oh, that looks good" to a burger commercial.
I don't eat meat!!!!

So... in fear that I will do something I will regret later, I am going to make pancakes, with raspberries (that's where the indulgence comes in... humor me).

Oops...

I knew there was something strange, something I was forgetting as I was starting to prep tonight's dinner. I ran through the checklist, everything was there. Chicken, rice, peas, water, milk, butter, sauce... casserole pan.

Even after I popped everything in to the oven, I couldn't shake the "I'm forgetting something, something is wrong" feeling....

Diva and I played a game together... still feeling like I am forgetting something...

THEN it hit me... Oops!

I won't forget NEXT year!!!!

Something to Smile About

It's THAT time of the year - February break. I feel happy to have her home. The house feels so alive when Diva is here, relaxed, having fun.

It does feel weird having no snow. February vacation use to mean building snowmen, having snowball fights, bundling before going outside to play. It's 41 right now. We haven't had snow since October 29 (not that I am complaining).

Thinking back, when Diva was still an "itty bitty", 9 years ago. We were staying with a friend and we got so much snow on Presidents Day that we couldn't let any of the kids go in the backyard in fear of LOSING them!

Just One of Those Days...

Just tired. I don't think I am sick... but I am not feeling very "me" right now. Simple day - making chicken and dumplings for Elvis tonight. I am thinking about toast for myself. The dishes can wait until the morning... ugh.

Wine and Dine

Today Elvis and I had a beautiful outing. We discovered a quaint winery with a fantastic restaurant. We took a tour of the place, complete with tastings of 6 of their offerings. I am not what you would consider a wine drinker, prefer the sweeter things - but I was pleasantly surprised.

We already talked about coming back for a picnic lunch on the grounds (which they encourage, they even open the bottles for you to enjoy on the property) as soon as the days get warmer and the trees return to their happy green.

Lunch was a carrot bisque and half a turkey sandwich with apple chutney and gouda cheese - a scoop of potato salad and two juicy slices of pineapple. It was beyond fantastic... but don't take my word on it, look for yourself!

Pizza Pie

Tonight's dinner came from a cross between craving pizza and not having enough mix to make a crust and having a deep-dish pie crust left over from yesterday's quiche.

It's simple, it's easy, it can be tweak to fit different tastes or use up what's hanging around in the fridge. I'll post what I used, feel free to change it around, and if you do, let me know what you did and how it was.

My EASY Pizza Pie

1 deep dish crust

1 pound ground chicken - browned

1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes

1 pepper - diced

1 onion - diced

1.5 cups shredded cheese

1 T olive oil

minced garlic

spices (I used sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, red chili powder, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper)

Saute pepper and onion with olive oil in a sauce pan. Add diced tomatoes and spices. Cook on low for about 30 minutes. Allow to cool enough to use a blender to make a sauce. Return to sauce pan, add cooked chicken and cheese. I added more garlic because, that's how we like it. *lol*

Bake 350 for 45 minutes - let cool before cutting

Real Men Bake Quiche!

I must admit, I feel a bit spoiled today. I also feel full!
Elvis brought Diva to school today and returned with ingredients to make breakfast. Not just any breakfast... Quiche!!! He whipped it up and I had to take a pic of it and share it with you all... and yes, that is an Ikea plate.

Super Easy Even Elvis Can Make It Egg, Cheese & Sausage Quiche

1.5 cups heavy cream (or milk)
4 eggs (beaten)
6 turkey sausage links (sliced)
1.5 cups shredded cheese
1 deep dish pie crust

Mix everything together and put in to crust.
bake 350 for 1 hour

Pretty Little Pleats...

I have been trying to find pants for Elvis. He needs a couple of pairs for the cruise we are going on. I thought the hardest decision would be choosing between khaki and dark khaki. Oh boy was I wrong!

Pleats, double pleats, stripes, pinstripes, hounds-tooth, gingham, plaid...

Whatever happened to just "dress pants"? You know, black, navy, gray and if you were "hip" khaki? Flat-front, no cuff, no design... PANTS?

The search continues...

Valentine's Day 2012

Am I Broken?

I look complete. I feel as if everything is where it should be ...
So, why am I not up in arms about the same things "the others" are?

Am I broken? Am I missing whatever it is I am suppose to have that allows me to give a flying fig?

I have passion. I have conviction.

Sitting back, listening to the current events -- I realized that these people have nothing better to do than seek out things to be irate about. The things that have them flailing arms has me raising eyebrows.

Valentine's Day - What has changed THAT much since the days my friends would exchange pretty pieces of paper with cute pictures and funny sayings like 'choo choo choose me' in the smoke above a smiling train? Occassionally, there may be a box of conversation hearts. Let's be honest. Who has plowed through an entire box in one sitting? I know I haven't. Even if every kid was to give a snack size piece of candy. Where does it say that the kids have to eat it all in one day? (Halloween better watch out, it's going to be next.)

Valentine's Day sweets banned from Newton school: MyFoxBOSTON.com

One of the mothers said in a radio interview "to give a child a piece of candy means you don't love them". WHAT???? Ever? My solution: If you don't want to give candy to the classmates, don't buy it. If you choose not to give candy to your child, let them go through the tradition of trading Valentine's, but have them hand over the candy when they get home.

The same can be said with the current birth control argument - if you don't believe in birth control, don't take it. Please don't stop those from who want to take it, for whatever personal reason they have, from being able to have it covered by their health insurance.

There are more examples of my 'brokenness' but I could be here all day...

Liquid Life

Coffee - kape, qahwa, café, caffè, kaffee, コーヒー , кофеий, cafea, kawa, กาแฟ  - Call it what you will... but all who have sipped the glorious bean agree ...


it's awesome!

Love Long Ago

Today's post is just a memory of my elementary school years and the precious pieces of paper.

E-g-g-p-l-a-n-t Spells Love

You may be looking at the title shaking your head. Let me assure you, I know what the dictionary says it spells, but with all the work that goes in to making a low-fat, non-fried eggplant parm... that's LOVE!

Elvis is working on Valentine's Day. I already told him that if he walks through the door on Tuesday with a bunch of roses, I'll whack him on the head with them. I am not against Valentine's Day. I happen to like it, a lot. I am not a fan of tossing money away because the calendar tells you to. He heard a commercial for a real rose dipped in 24K gold. I looked at him and shook my head. He confessed, he thought about it. There are so many other ways to show love and if he was dead-set on giving me a gold rose, instead of spending $75, plus tax, plus shipping for one... I would rather have a nice rose pin... something I can look at, use, show off, remember the day he gave it to me.

Seriously, I don't hate Valentine's Day!!!!

We are doing our "date" today. He went to the store to buy the ingredients and I am cooking the eggplant parm, home-made gravy (tomato sauce to you) and pasta for dinner. We rented a few movies from Redbox. Nothing says Valentine's like Scorpion King 3 and 50/50. *lol*

I am very much a "chick flick" admirer, but I love him enough to force him to watch them with me.

If It Looks Like Strawberry Jelly & It Tastes Like Strawberry Jelly ...

If you find strawberry jelly in my house, someone must have brought it over! Diva is allergic to strawberries - a tough thing for a kid, EVERYTHING kid related comes in strawberry!

We had stopped at the store on Tuesday and she asked me what it tasted like. I didn't know how to answer that. I can tell her what it was like, for me, but it won't answer her real question. What does it taste like, to her.

That night, I sat here and thought about it. There has to be a way to give her the strawberry experience without the fear of a mad dash to the ER.

Yesterday it hit me! Mock-Strawberry Jelly. Yes, you read that correctly, MOCK.

I made half a batch. It does have the texture of the real deal. The coloring is a little off. The taste is perfect! Well, close enough to be perfect, especially if you never had one before.

Tadah, it's sooooo yummy and easy. EASY easy!

The recipe can be found ->here<-