Go read this.
And do this with this.
For the children.
It's important.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
What I've been up to
This is my new hobby. I love it. These pieces are for the Craft and Bake Sale happening at Wildlife on December 6, from 9 am until 2. If you live nearby, be sure to come see us. This is the 16th Annual Sale and all proceeds go to the Center. There are other crafts, too, all donated by volunteers and members. Usually lots of crochet/knit items, holiday items, pet treats, baked and canned goods, lots of good stuff. Park admission is $3 for adults, $1 for kids.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Wiggin' Out a Little Bit
When I got home from work last night, I told Hubs that I was kinda wiggin' out. This is not the first time I've participated in a presidential election, but it is the first time the candidate for which I voted was elected. Obama is also the first President that I've wanted to meet. And, not to mention, this is such an historical election. And I helped. I don't think that I've yet to wrap my head around what we've done, though. He just seems so incredibly calm and collected, and takes decision making seriously. I am so excited and relieved about what he is preparing to do for our country.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Do you ever feel
about this big
when you want to help
about this much
but find yourself
here, instead?
photo from herewhen you want to help
about this much
but find yourself
here, instead?
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Natural Pest Control
Underfoot
This is Chewey's new favorite sleeping position/place. Right under my feet at the corner of the couch.
Easy, Tasty, Chocolate
A good friend passed this recipe on to me from Betty Crocker. I halved it, made it, and ate it. All. by. my. self.
Slow Cooker Hot Fudge Sundae Cake
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk (I used skim)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I used olive)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cups chopped nuts (I didn't use, optional I guess)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 1/2 cups hot water
Spray inside of 2- to 3 1/2 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Mix flour, granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa, the baking powder and salt in medium bowl (this could probably be done in the slow cooker). Stir in milk, oil and vanilla until smooth. Stir in nuts. Spread batter evenly in slow cooker.
Mix brown sugar and 1/4 cup baking cocoa in small bowl. Stir in hot water until smooth. Pour evenly over batter in slow cooker.
Cover and cook on high heat setting 2 hour to 2 1/2 hours or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Turn off slow cooker. Let cake stand uncovered 30 to 40 minutes to cool slightly before serving. Spoon warm cake into dessert dishes and spoon sauce over top.
There might be some left for Hubs when he gets home tomorrow.
Slow Cooker Hot Fudge Sundae Cake
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk (I used skim)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I used olive)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cups chopped nuts (I didn't use, optional I guess)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 1/2 cups hot water
Spray inside of 2- to 3 1/2 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Mix flour, granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa, the baking powder and salt in medium bowl (this could probably be done in the slow cooker). Stir in milk, oil and vanilla until smooth. Stir in nuts. Spread batter evenly in slow cooker.
Mix brown sugar and 1/4 cup baking cocoa in small bowl. Stir in hot water until smooth. Pour evenly over batter in slow cooker.
Cover and cook on high heat setting 2 hour to 2 1/2 hours or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Turn off slow cooker. Let cake stand uncovered 30 to 40 minutes to cool slightly before serving. Spoon warm cake into dessert dishes and spoon sauce over top.
There might be some left for Hubs when he gets home tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
A Really Bad Start
Early this morning I was having a dream. I was either on some sort of campus or living in a very small town. I lived in a suite in a dorm sort of building with a friend that reminded me of 3 of my good friends all sort of mixed together. We lived in the corner, on the second floor. There was some sort of conflict or scandal going on that I was against. Not actively, I just didn't agree with whatever the issue was. Well, a couple of guys had threatened me and I decided to leave. As I was feverishly throwing stuff in a couple of bags, the headmaster came by to see what was going on. I told him that I was afraid for my life, and asked if he could send one of "our" guys up to our room just in case the other guys showed up. After he got there, the two "threateners" arrived and I nervously backed up to the guy that was sent to watch out for me. This guy hooked his arms under mine just as the other two picked up my feet and they started to beat me. I began to flail and scream as I watched their fists connect with my midsection. Hubs woke up when I was screaming out loud and tried to wake me. I thought he was one of the men and started to fight him. When I realized I was awake, I was hyperventilating and crying uncontrollably. I've never been this terrified from a dream. I was incredibly shaken and could only see these men coming at me everytime I closed my eyes.
About an hour or so later, I got out of bed to get ready for work. There were a few little things in my regular routine that I forgot to do. I think because I was still pretty upset from the dream. I left for work around 7:20, stopped for gas and then got on the interstate, and stayed in the right lane. I had gone about a mile, then hit a rough spots of patched holes and my front end began to shake violently. I've been having this problem recently when I hit a bump the wrong way, and if I steer to the right just a bit everything evens out. But it didn't this time. The shaking got worse and moved up into the steering column. There were cars in front and behind me and in the left lane. It was all I could do to keep the truck in my lane and pull off into the emergency lane. I sat there shaking and approaching hyperventilation again trying to calm down. Hubs was only a few minutes behind me, but the heavy traffic along with where I pulled over didn't leave him much warning or room to get over. He called to see if I was okay and if he needed to come back to get me to go to work. I didn't want to leave my truck because it wasn't the best part of town to leave a car on the interstate. I drove on to work, didn't leave for lunch, and drove home cringing over every bump in the road. We're carpooling the rest of the week and truck's going to the mechanic on Saturday.
Luckily, the rest of the day was uneventful. I hope I never have another one of those dreams.
About an hour or so later, I got out of bed to get ready for work. There were a few little things in my regular routine that I forgot to do. I think because I was still pretty upset from the dream. I left for work around 7:20, stopped for gas and then got on the interstate, and stayed in the right lane. I had gone about a mile, then hit a rough spots of patched holes and my front end began to shake violently. I've been having this problem recently when I hit a bump the wrong way, and if I steer to the right just a bit everything evens out. But it didn't this time. The shaking got worse and moved up into the steering column. There were cars in front and behind me and in the left lane. It was all I could do to keep the truck in my lane and pull off into the emergency lane. I sat there shaking and approaching hyperventilation again trying to calm down. Hubs was only a few minutes behind me, but the heavy traffic along with where I pulled over didn't leave him much warning or room to get over. He called to see if I was okay and if he needed to come back to get me to go to work. I didn't want to leave my truck because it wasn't the best part of town to leave a car on the interstate. I drove on to work, didn't leave for lunch, and drove home cringing over every bump in the road. We're carpooling the rest of the week and truck's going to the mechanic on Saturday.
Luckily, the rest of the day was uneventful. I hope I never have another one of those dreams.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Such a Great Day
About a week ago, I noticed these in the yard:
That usually means my birthday is right around the corner. I love these spider lilies. I never know where they will pop up and they are so pretty.
About two weeks ago, Mom treated us to a fabulous pedicure, sort of for her birthday. Early for me, late for my sister, and right on time for her. The biggest gift for her was spending time with her girls.
This is what was waiting for me at work today:
Pictures of 1977 Couture at the top of the stairs, and new decorating. The girls are famous for photoshopping heads onto bodies, and the most-used body in Donatella Versace. Several delivery people that I have never even seen before wished me a happy birthday, AND everyone in the building knows how old I am.
And yes, that's silly string. Everywhere.
The girls also treated me to lunch at Newk's. It's a new-ish cafe downtown. I had a very tasty Pesto Chicken sandwich with goat cheese. Most definitely will be going back there. Later in the afternoon, yet another surprise with coke and root beer floats!
After lunch, a beautiful bouquet was delivered from Liza with a note that said, "You're not 31, you're 18 with 13 years experience!" There are also some really cool green beads in the place of ribbon. Perfect for my new hobby!
For dinner, Hubs took me to Firebirds, ooh la la. I ordered a glass of Honig Sauvignon Blanc. Lots of oak on the nose, but a very easy wine to drink. For dinner, I ordered the (enthusiastically recommended) Cilantro-Grilled Chicken Breast. Oh. My. Goodness! So good. And with the wine, it was even better. The spices in the tomato jack cheese sauce went perfectly with the oak in the wine. Then, we ordered this:
It was a piece of pure vanilla, creme brulle cheesecake with fresh berries and raspberry sauce. They even put a little candle in it! It looks like a mess on the plate, but it was oh-so-tasty.
Afer dinner, we walked over to the giant outdoor store and picked up the rest of my birthday present from Hubs. A speedometer and under-saddle bag for my new bike.
I had many well wishes and a really great day, and just wanted to say thanks to everybody!
That usually means my birthday is right around the corner. I love these spider lilies. I never know where they will pop up and they are so pretty.
About two weeks ago, Mom treated us to a fabulous pedicure, sort of for her birthday. Early for me, late for my sister, and right on time for her. The biggest gift for her was spending time with her girls.
This is what was waiting for me at work today:
Pictures of 1977 Couture at the top of the stairs, and new decorating. The girls are famous for photoshopping heads onto bodies, and the most-used body in Donatella Versace. Several delivery people that I have never even seen before wished me a happy birthday, AND everyone in the building knows how old I am.
And yes, that's silly string. Everywhere.The girls also treated me to lunch at Newk's. It's a new-ish cafe downtown. I had a very tasty Pesto Chicken sandwich with goat cheese. Most definitely will be going back there. Later in the afternoon, yet another surprise with coke and root beer floats!
After lunch, a beautiful bouquet was delivered from Liza with a note that said, "You're not 31, you're 18 with 13 years experience!" There are also some really cool green beads in the place of ribbon. Perfect for my new hobby!
For dinner, Hubs took me to Firebirds, ooh la la. I ordered a glass of Honig Sauvignon Blanc. Lots of oak on the nose, but a very easy wine to drink. For dinner, I ordered the (enthusiastically recommended) Cilantro-Grilled Chicken Breast. Oh. My. Goodness! So good. And with the wine, it was even better. The spices in the tomato jack cheese sauce went perfectly with the oak in the wine. Then, we ordered this:
It was a piece of pure vanilla, creme brulle cheesecake with fresh berries and raspberry sauce. They even put a little candle in it! It looks like a mess on the plate, but it was oh-so-tasty.Afer dinner, we walked over to the giant outdoor store and picked up the rest of my birthday present from Hubs. A speedometer and under-saddle bag for my new bike.
I had many well wishes and a really great day, and just wanted to say thanks to everybody!
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Welcome
Along with everyone else in Birmingham, I welcome the evacuees from Louisiana, Mississippi, and south Alabama to find respite here. But I have one question:
Can you be a little nicer on the road?
Thursday, August 28, 2008
The New Bike
I got a new bike! I found it on craigslist.com about 4:15 this afternoon, and it was loaded up by 5:30. This was my first craigslist purchase and it was kinda cool.
It is a Trek 7.2 FX WSD.
It is a Trek 7.2 FX WSD.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
A New Activity
Hubby's been working on a plan to lose some weight, and I've been struggling myself with feeling a little uncomfortable. I took a health and fitness class this summer and it made me realize that I am a fat lazy slob.
So, not only have I started eating better (thanks to Hubby), but now we have a new piece of motivation. Several years ago, I could run and run and run and drop weight like nobody's business. One problem with that now is that I have to actually run. Oh, and the whole bad knee thing. Then there's the weather and the dogs that always follow me and the kids that follow the dogs.
So, I found a solution. An elliptical machine. No impact on the knees, no dogs (sort of), no kids, no weather, no running. And...no excuse. I researched a few and decided on the Stamina CT2.0 from Walmart.com. It arrived to the store in about 4 days. I picked it up Sunday, put it together in 1 1/2 hours, and used it for the first time this morning. 15 minutes forward and 1 minute backwards. It doesn't sound like much, but that 1 minute going backwards is intense.
So, not only have I started eating better (thanks to Hubby), but now we have a new piece of motivation. Several years ago, I could run and run and run and drop weight like nobody's business. One problem with that now is that I have to actually run. Oh, and the whole bad knee thing. Then there's the weather and the dogs that always follow me and the kids that follow the dogs.
So, I found a solution. An elliptical machine. No impact on the knees, no dogs (sort of), no kids, no weather, no running. And...no excuse. I researched a few and decided on the Stamina CT2.0 from Walmart.com. It arrived to the store in about 4 days. I picked it up Sunday, put it together in 1 1/2 hours, and used it for the first time this morning. 15 minutes forward and 1 minute backwards. It doesn't sound like much, but that 1 minute going backwards is intense.
Spanakopitza
A coworker brought something similar to this to a department potluck. It was so tasty, I had to have the recipe. It goes something like this:
2 pie crusts - not in the tins
1 box of frozen spinach - thawed
or 2 good handfuls of fresh
some ricotta (1/2 a cup or so)
some mozzarella (1/2 a cup or so)
some parmesean (as much as you want)
garlic powder (or fresh squished)
mushrooms (sauteed would be nice!)
2 eggs
Preheat oven to about 350. Take pie crusts out of fridge to soften. Put a piece of foil on baking sheet and spray w/nonstick. Mix thawed spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesean, garlic powder, 1 egg, mushrooms and/or whatever you want to add in a bowl. The pie crusts should be soft by now, carefully roll one out on the foil. Dump the mixture out on the pie crust and spread out to about 1 inch from the edge.
Put 2nd pie crust on top and fold edges together all the way around to seal. Poke a few holes or cut a few slits in the top to vent. Brush with egg wash. 
Cover with another piece of foil and bake for about 40 minutes or until tasty looking and golden. Remove from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes if you can stand it!
(I forgot the eggwash, and I thought that cheese on top would be a good idea...)
2 pie crusts - not in the tins
1 box of frozen spinach - thawed
or 2 good handfuls of fresh
some ricotta (1/2 a cup or so)
some mozzarella (1/2 a cup or so)
some parmesean (as much as you want)
garlic powder (or fresh squished)
mushrooms (sauteed would be nice!)
2 eggs
Preheat oven to about 350. Take pie crusts out of fridge to soften. Put a piece of foil on baking sheet and spray w/nonstick. Mix thawed spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesean, garlic powder, 1 egg, mushrooms and/or whatever you want to add in a bowl. The pie crusts should be soft by now, carefully roll one out on the foil. Dump the mixture out on the pie crust and spread out to about 1 inch from the edge.
Put 2nd pie crust on top and fold edges together all the way around to seal. Poke a few holes or cut a few slits in the top to vent. Brush with egg wash. 
Cover with another piece of foil and bake for about 40 minutes or until tasty looking and golden. Remove from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes if you can stand it!
(I forgot the eggwash, and I thought that cheese on top would be a good idea...)
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Happy Birthday, Hubby!
Last week, we started our trip to Glacier National Park, Montana. Hubby's birthday was last week and I had a wonderful surprise adventure planned. We left work Thursday afternoon for the airport and got to Atlanta. And stayed there. Our connecting flight boarded early (how does that even happen?) and we were bumped along with about a dozen other people. Having booked the flight through Travelocity, I immediately got on the phone. I was connected to a man named "Abraham" who sounded like he was probably somewhere between Kuwait and China. After explaining our predicament and being put on hold several times, he said that Travelocity could not help us and we would have to deal with an agent. So much for that trip guarantee.
The Delta agent found a few flights for us, but none of them were leaving Atlanta until late the next day. From as early as noon to as late as 7pm. One of them was to LAX then Salt Lake. One was our original plan straight to Salt Lake, but didn't leave until 6:30 the next night. After declaring that I would never use Travelocity or Delta again, she magically found a flight leaving at 7 am to put us in Salt Lake by 9 am. Done. I still probably won't ever fly Delta again. The flight attendants didn't seem very friendly and their intercom skills were a little lacking. They all sounded somewhat inebriated.
We finally made it Salt Lake City and proceeded directly to the parking lot where Jenny and Dan had very generously left one of their cars for us. We drove from Salt Lake to Columbia Falls, Montana where Jenny found an awesome cabin from Wild River Adventures . The drive was a lot longer than yahoo maps let on, but it was beautiful. Dan and Chrishan met up with us in Columbia Falls to lead us to the cabin. Thanks guys!
I managed to acquire a killer migraine on the trip from Salt Lake and that combined with a really long day sent us both straight to bed. Saturday morning Dan cooked an awesome breakfast for everyone. Shan (you're a lifesaver!) worked some kind of magic on my head and neck that relieved the worst of my headache so I was able to enjoy the hike to Avalanche Lake. After lunch, we headed back to the cars and drove to the Hidden Lake Visitor Center. We all decided that we would hike Hidden Lake the next day and headed back to the Chalet.
Dan cooked an amazing dinner for all of us: grilled steak and chicken, baked potatoes, and squash and zucchini. We surprised Hubby (again) with a rich chocolate cake. In the absence of candles, Dan improvised with matches and nearly lost a finger.
Sunday we headed back to Hidden Lake. The change in weather was really weird. Saturday was beautiful and sunny, not too hot. Sunday was overcast, windy and cold. We still enjoyed a beautiful hike to the overlook, though. Had the weather been better, we would have hiked all the way down to the lake. After returning to the parking lot, we all decided (at Dan's suggestion) to do lunch in St. Mary's, and found The Curly Bear. We drove back to the Chalet for some rest. Dan cooked another stellar meal of quesadillas.
Sadly, Hubs and I had to get to bed early so we could leave by 5 the next morning. We left out a little early and took a different route suggested by Dan and Chrishan. It was a much more scenic route and seemed a bit faster. We arrived at the Salt Lake Airport in plenty of time to catch our plane. Once we got to Denver and checked in, we saw Martina Navritilova and her family, as well as her little pet dog.
We had such a great time with everyone and meeting the kids. We're already looking forward to another big vacation next year.
There's a bunch a pictures. We got some really good ones, and I just couldn't pick any favorites.
(blogger won't let me embed picasa album right now :(. check back later)
The Delta agent found a few flights for us, but none of them were leaving Atlanta until late the next day. From as early as noon to as late as 7pm. One of them was to LAX then Salt Lake. One was our original plan straight to Salt Lake, but didn't leave until 6:30 the next night. After declaring that I would never use Travelocity or Delta again, she magically found a flight leaving at 7 am to put us in Salt Lake by 9 am. Done. I still probably won't ever fly Delta again. The flight attendants didn't seem very friendly and their intercom skills were a little lacking. They all sounded somewhat inebriated.
We finally made it Salt Lake City and proceeded directly to the parking lot where Jenny and Dan had very generously left one of their cars for us. We drove from Salt Lake to Columbia Falls, Montana where Jenny found an awesome cabin from Wild River Adventures . The drive was a lot longer than yahoo maps let on, but it was beautiful. Dan and Chrishan met up with us in Columbia Falls to lead us to the cabin. Thanks guys!
I managed to acquire a killer migraine on the trip from Salt Lake and that combined with a really long day sent us both straight to bed. Saturday morning Dan cooked an awesome breakfast for everyone. Shan (you're a lifesaver!) worked some kind of magic on my head and neck that relieved the worst of my headache so I was able to enjoy the hike to Avalanche Lake. After lunch, we headed back to the cars and drove to the Hidden Lake Visitor Center. We all decided that we would hike Hidden Lake the next day and headed back to the Chalet.
Dan cooked an amazing dinner for all of us: grilled steak and chicken, baked potatoes, and squash and zucchini. We surprised Hubby (again) with a rich chocolate cake. In the absence of candles, Dan improvised with matches and nearly lost a finger.
Sunday we headed back to Hidden Lake. The change in weather was really weird. Saturday was beautiful and sunny, not too hot. Sunday was overcast, windy and cold. We still enjoyed a beautiful hike to the overlook, though. Had the weather been better, we would have hiked all the way down to the lake. After returning to the parking lot, we all decided (at Dan's suggestion) to do lunch in St. Mary's, and found The Curly Bear. We drove back to the Chalet for some rest. Dan cooked another stellar meal of quesadillas.
Sadly, Hubs and I had to get to bed early so we could leave by 5 the next morning. We left out a little early and took a different route suggested by Dan and Chrishan. It was a much more scenic route and seemed a bit faster. We arrived at the Salt Lake Airport in plenty of time to catch our plane. Once we got to Denver and checked in, we saw Martina Navritilova and her family, as well as her little pet dog.
We had such a great time with everyone and meeting the kids. We're already looking forward to another big vacation next year.
There's a bunch a pictures. We got some really good ones, and I just couldn't pick any favorites.
(blogger won't let me embed picasa album right now :(. check back later)
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Additions
Little Girl had 4 babies on June 11.
So far we have been calling them
#4 will probably stay with us (because we need one more pet), Uno probably has a home, and Tux and Yoda will probably go to Pa Keeper.
So far we have been calling them
Uno
Tux
Yoda
and #4.
#4 will probably stay with us (because we need one more pet), Uno probably has a home, and Tux and Yoda will probably go to Pa Keeper.
Adventures
The weekend after the Fourth, we went to St. Joseph's Peninsula State Park near Cape San Blas, Florida. The afternoons were nice, but both mornings we were there, terrible storms blew in. Sunday morning, we didn't really even pack the tent, it just sort of got rolled up and stuffed in the bag. The wind was so bad, the stakes were pulled up, and it was like fighting a hot air balloon to pack up. We haven't pulled the tent out yet to clean up all the dirt and sand. Not really looking forward to that.
We took everything we needed for the camping trip and planned a crab boil for the second night. We bought an extra dip net, turkey necks, and fishing licenses. Two years ago, we caught about 20 crabs, but didn't know what we were doing and killed them all. After researching how to catch, cook, prepare and eat, we set out to crab. For this:
Three crabs and about an ounce or so of meat.
These are the other pictures from the trip, all taken with my cell phone.
We took everything we needed for the camping trip and planned a crab boil for the second night. We bought an extra dip net, turkey necks, and fishing licenses. Two years ago, we caught about 20 crabs, but didn't know what we were doing and killed them all. After researching how to catch, cook, prepare and eat, we set out to crab. For this:
Three crabs and about an ounce or so of meat.
These are the other pictures from the trip, all taken with my cell phone.
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