Lazy Sunday

Sunday Mornings are always nice. Some Sunday mornings are spec-damn-tacular!

There's no real game plan for Sunday's like these. I did what I needed to do on Saturday or perhaps I have a Monday holiday and I can do it then. But on Super Sunday Mornings, I have nothing to do and no place to go.

I sip on a few great cups of coffee. I might sift through some emails or searching the web. Perhaps I'll finish up a book that I was reading or start a new one. I can clip coupons. I'll get a little bit of some lite housework done. Maybe I'll checkout The Food Newtork or The Food Channel and get hungry, so I'll maka a vegetarian fry up with eggs, potatoes, toast, and a little salmon.

There's nothing quite like it.

Except the Sunday's when I wake up and get to snuggle before doing everything else (bow-chic-a-wow-wow!!)

Rain, rain, go away!

It's raining today and it will rain tomorrow but I'm not letting that get in the way of summer sandals!

I've spent the morning (you know, while working) looking at summer sandals and dreaming. A sporty pair for the baseball game, the sexy pair for the class reunion, the casual pair for nice dinners out with the fam. I didn't order any but I've made mental appointments to visit 3 shoe stores Saturday. I'll be there bright and early with cash in hand!

I also picked up 3 new bottles of nail polish!! New nail polish for a new year! They will look so nice on freshly manicured toesies. They are all shades of soft pink. My feet like soft shades of pink in the summer. I go a bit darker in the winter but softer in the summer. I don't care what the fashion trends are -- my toes like what they like!

And, this weekend, I looked at sundresses. I wanted to add to the one that I got 2 weeks ago. The Princess picked up 2 really cute skirts and I tried on a few things but nothing worked. That's okay. This weekend will be more of the same. Nice, light, summery materials only. Winter wool need not apply.

Oh, I also looked at new chairs for the patio. They were on sale and I need to have something to sit on as I read a good book while sipping on an adult slushie. The Princess can have fruit punch.

And homemade ice cream! I've been collecting recipes all winter. Nutella ice cream. Lemon ice cream. Praline pecan ice cream. OMG. I am so ready. The ice cream maker has been sitting in the corner staring at me all winter. "Open me! Play with me! Love me!". I promise little ice cream maker, it's almost time!

So rain drops, you can continue to fall on my head but I'll be thinking of summer.

Have Stone? Make Some Soup.

This weekend the Princess and I made my super simple veggie soup but I didn't take a picture. That's really ok because I didn't use a recipe either.

Well, I didn't use a real recipe. Why not? I didn't have to. My soup recipes are the world's easiest. In the winter it's cold and I want something warm, fast. I have my go to faves - taco soup, twice baked potato soup, chili (ok, ok, it's really a stew) and vegetable soup.

Ever heard the story of "Stone Soup?" Well, my version of vegetable soup is amazingly like that (except without the stone - who the hell wants a dirty rock in their soup?).

Veggie Soup
A can of tomatoes (no salt added)
A can or bag of mixed veggies (no salt added)
12 - 16 oz of veggie broth (homemade is best - I always have broth in the freezer)
2 tablespoons (I guess - who measures?) vegan Worcestershire sauce
cumin, sage, parsley, pepper, slight hint of salt, hint of paprika

Warm it up (cause really, everything is already cooked) and go. But, the next day it's better.

Ma mere always made homemade soups in the winter. Once a cold spell hit, she would pull out the a big pot and start cutting vegetables and boiling chicken, skimming fat off the top, blah blah blah. I do it the easy way. No cutting, no chicken, no skimming fat.

Now, when I make my veggie broth, I do pull out the stock pot and do the chopping (carrots, parsnips, celery, potatoes, bell peppers, onions, garlic, etc.) and add spices galore. A vat veggie broth made at Thanksgiving will last me well into February.

Do I have some left? Yep. I have one lone container of veggie broth in the freezer. It's terrified that it won't get used. Never fear my container of veggie broth. Old man winter promises one or two more weekends of yukky weather.

And I promise one more batch of super simple veggie soup.

You Too Can Experience The Benefits Of Juicing!!

I bought the juicer!!! It only took me a year to take the plunge! You'd think that it would have been easier for me to make the purchase. It's not like it was a high ticket purchase. Heck, I've decided to get married in less time than that! No, it was more of the commitment to juicing. Once you make the purchase, you really have to do it cause any excuse you had is gone!

So, I got it and used it last night. It was great! I did a carrot, ginger, pineapple concoction that was nice (The Princess turned up her nose at it and said it was nasty. I never liked her anyway). Tonight, I'm trying a orange juice, carrot, spinach thing. Yum, yum. I'll take a picture and post.

1 step closer to completing 101 things! Yeah me!!

Dear Martha That Lives In My Head...

Dear MTLIMH (Martha That Lives Inside My Head),

I am sooo sorry that I have been neglecting you. I've watched other people's inner Martha hard at work and you have been stuck, "sat sitting" doing nothing. Not a casserole, not a shepherds pie, not a stitched pillow, nuthin.(Well, that's not true. I made brownies Saturday. Of course they were a hit. You want the recipe? Of course. I am more than happy to give it to you. Look at the bottom).

MTLIMH, there were so many opportunities for you to come out and play. Remember when I needed cute bathroom towels? I bought plain towels and pretty embellishments to put on them and where are they now? In a bag in the closet. What's hanging on the bathroom wall? Worn out towel that I should be ashamed of.

Well no more! Beginning this weekend I'm going to let the MTLIMH out. We're gonna cook and decorate and make everything so pretty it could go in a magazine. AND, I'll post it so you can see. It will keep me honest.

Now I won't be so embarrassed when I see what my fellow bloggers are doing. I'll be one of the crowd. And really, isn't that what we all secretly want? To be one of the crowd?

The Worlds Bestest, Most Easiest Brownies
(1) box of brownie mix (fudgelike is best)
(1) large bar of Hershey's Symphony chocolate

1. Mix the brownies according to the mix.
2. Poor half of the mix into the baking pan.
3. Break the bar of chocolate into pieces (there are lines on the chocolate bar. follow them) and place on the brownie mix.
4. Poor the remaining mix into the pan.
5. Bake according to the directions on the box.
6. Let it cool.
7. Eat 1 piece.
8. Go to the store and buy good ice cream (not that crappy kind).
9. Eat another piece topped with ice cream.

Q&A
Does it have to be Hershey's Symphony? Well, yes. Otherwise I wouldn't have said it. Really, it has a wonderful taste and doesn't completely melt into the brownie. You don't have to use it, but I would and well, the MTLIMH would too.

Eat Breakfast Like a King!

I must give a shout out to my breakfast bloggers! They have really inspired me.

I know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. And, I have plenty of time to make a healthy breakfast. I just run out of ideas! I fall back on omelets and really, after a while, omelets get old.

My fave thing for breakfast is oatmeal (well my favorite thing for breakfast is a long, luxurious snuggle but food wise it's oatmeal). It's healthy, quick, portable but alas, dull as a grey lump of, well, oatmeal.

Well never fear! The wonderful bloggers below came into my blogview. I was hooked. Who knew that you could make some many fan-tab-u-lous (portable) things for breakfast! Today I had oatmeal with sweet potato, brown sugar, peanut butter and bananas. It was pretty good! I was very surprised. And of course, I was still stuffed at lunchtime so I just nibbled on lunch. That was good, because I was so excited about my breakfast, I forgot my lunch at home. No worries though. If I were ever stranded at work, my desk drawer has enough food in it to feed me for 2 weeks.

Damn it! If I'm stuck in the building for 5 minutes longer than 6pm, I'm breaking a window!

Thank you lover-ly breakfast blogs!!

Simply Breakfast
Breakfast In Texas
All In The Oats

"Happy Birthday!!"

(in the words of Frosty the Snowman).

2010 is here -- a breath of fresh air, the dawn of a new day, the light that breaks through the horizon at 6am (and I have to roll over to the side of the bed facing the wall). Let's welcome 2010 as we would a new lover, not to be tainted with the stench of the old one, but to be treated with glee and joy, not knowing what we will get or even if we'll like it, but knowing it's here and so far, it's better than any other lover we've even had.

I digress, it's only 2pm. How bad could the new year be only 14 hours in?

I felt the need for a full breakfast this morning. Skillet potatoes, blueberry muffins (made with whole wheat flour), fluffy cheese omelet and orange pineapple juice (nope, not a drop of vodka in it). I'm stuffed! "They" (No, I don't know who "they" are) say that what you do on the first day of the new year is what you will be doing for the rest of the year. Even though I take this with a grain of salt, it wouldn't be so bad to have a year of hardy breakfasts to start the day. If only I could get this new lover (2010) to make them for me.

The Princess and I are planning a very leisurely day. We'll get dressed, go to Ma Mere's and eat black eyed peas, collard greens, hot water cornbread and fresh corn. And oh the sweets. She's planning a german chocolate cake and pecan pie (there goes eating healthy, day one!). Then we'll roll ourselves back home and finish watching the Twilight Zone marathon.

I hope everyone has as wonderful a New Years Day as The Princess and I will. Remember, it's a new year -- don't take old grudges, anger or issues into the new year. Turn the page of your journal and start fresh!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8Y_Oh1Xb10

Melted plastic and rum cookies.

Every day should be a new day with a new lesson learned. I learned a new lesson today. Do not place Rubbermaid container tops on the stove and then turn the oven on. The top will melt. I know, I know, it doesn't seem logical to me either. Indirect heat will melt a flimsy piece of plastic? If I pay $7 for a 26 piece set of plastic, 375 degrees of indirect heat (for 40 minutes) shouldn't melt it, even if the box tells you not to place in oven or on stove. Perhaps if they had pictures with a red "X" over it, I would have understood. (deep sigh).

I also learned that melted plastic, once cooled, will pull up off of a stove in a nice, deformed pattern that is ready for the trash. Nothing ruined, but of course, 24 cents worth of plastic (okay 48 cents...it was two tops that melted).

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The baking began in earnest this weekend. Last week I made fudge. That’s not baking. This weekend I made muffins and almond crescent cookies. Except, I didn’t have any almond extract. I used rum extract instead. Do you think that will alter the taste? Yeah, probably. Do you think The Princess and I will care? Will it prevent us from eating them? No, probably not. It has to be a burnt, nasty mess for us to not at least taste them!

Fa la la la la – la la – la – la!

NOTE: the rum flavor made a great cookie. I cut the batch in half and ended up with 20 cookies. Next time I'll make the entire batch.

Cinnamon Syrup!

Guess what I made today?! Yep, cinnamon syrup!

Anyone that knows me knows that I have coffee every morning and I love cinnamon flavored syrup. Well, I've been purchasing bottles of syrup for years and using it sparingly for fear that I would run out and wouldn't find a "famous Seattle house of coffee" soon enough that sold the flavor tha I like. Or, I'd pay $5 a day for a large cinnamon something-something-something latte.

Well, the economy doesn't really let me drink a $5 coffee each day and feel good about it. And, even though the purchasing of syrup helps, I'd rather spend even less and not have to drive 20 miles out of my way to find it (I know it's odd but not all "coffee houses" sell the cinnamon flavor).

In my desperation (I was down to two day's worth or syrup!!) I looked on the internet and found a site that told me how to make my own cinnamon syrup. I needed to make a simple syrup (using brown sugar instead of granulated sugar) and steep cinnamon sticks while it cooks for 10 - 15 minutes. Then let it cool and wha-la! Cinnamon syrup.

Oh de-lish! Oh happy day! I can make my own cinnamon syrup? I really can have it all! Ok, maybe that's extreme but whatever...

I'm working on several "101 things in 1001 days". It's not as easy as it sounds (well, I guess that was kinda the point).

I like the fact that I made a list and published it. It holds me accountable. It makes me want to do better -- be better. It makes me want to hurry up and finish 10 things just to prove I'm really doing something. I keep a copy of the list posted near my desk at home and a copy in my purse. Every time I do something little towards something on my list, I pull it out and make notes. It gives me a really warm feeling.

So...what have I been working on? I'm so glad you asked!


Blog 75% of the 1001 days - (8/16) 50%, not good. I'm working on it.

Develop a skin care regime - I've been studying my skin. I went to my Clinique lady, found out what she recommended and then went to my Avon lady and bought it.

Cook 35 new dinners - (1) It's a start.

Comment on 72 random blogs - (8) I didn't want them to be frivolous. I wanted them to be meaningful. It's easy to comment on just any 72!

Host a movie night - It's planned. I'll let you know next week how it goes!!

List 101 things that make me happy - (68)

Read 72 books - I'm working on 2. I'm almost done with one. AND I joined a book club.

Watch 10 complete BBC series - (1) Mapp & Lucia - nothing exciting. Typical British humor, but I liked it (it was British, duh!).

Save $1.00 per day - ($16) actually I put in a $20 when I got paid. It's easier and I'll save more.

Complete 101 random acts of kindness (1)

Of course there are other things that I am working on (in my mind). I have several recipes that I have written down and I'm keeping my eye out for the juicer to go on sale. I think I'm going to reward myself with something for each 10 items I finish. Not something big, something little. Maybe a pedicure or something. Yeah, I'll let you know.

Have you been working on YOUR 101? Did you even start? Get busy. After you write it and begin working toward the finish line, you'll feel really good.