One Sweet Love

So for the past few days I have been elbow deep in dough, sugar and cinnamon. 

I have made 5 full pans of maple iced cinnamon rolls and 6 pans of apple cinnamon rolls.  The 6' table is in the middle of my kitchen and will probably remain there until just before Christmas.  I am already tired of walking around it, but it really makes things so much easier, especially rolling out the dough for these babies. Look how pretty that is!

Like a flower. ;) The pan above got a little ambitious on me and tried to escape it's confines so I had to go ahead and bake it this evening.  Now I will have to fight to stay out of it, especially since there is no one else around to eat it right now. 

I mean, how can you resist that?!?

Until,

D :)

Sugar Cane | NaBloPoMo day 30

I scalded the milk, oil and sugar this morning, and then later added yeast, flour, and various other ingredients and created the most magnificent dough.  After letting it rise for a couple of hours I pulled the 6' long folding table out of the garage, scrubbed it down and set it up in the middle of my kitchen.  It's that time of year again! Time to make the cinnamon rolls!

The plan this evening was to roll out the dough and get a few pans made and ready to freeze, but my Kiddo had other ideas. He's been bugging me for a couple of weeks now for a new pillow. His current one is pretty lumpy and worn - we've had to wash it so much because of nose bleeds and allergies - the filling is shot. So tonight I made the trek to Target to get him a new pillow. I also picked up one of those allergy covers; it's supposed to be water proof and keep out all the allergen stuff. I put it on the new pillow and man, those things are noisy! But I thought I would give it a shot anyway and so I put the pillow case on over it and brought it to the kids' room, shortly after bed time.  Kiddo rejected it in less than a minute, coming out of his room to ask for his old pillow back. So I took off the allergy cover and let him try it again and a couple minutes later he said he still wanted his old pillow. I gave him the old one back - by this time the little one was complaining about his pillow too (copycat!) so I gave him the new one. I laid them both back down and left them to go to sleep. I went into the kitchen to prepare to roll out my dough.

Five minutes later, I hear bickering coming from their room so I went in to see what was going on. Kiddo was standing in front of Port's bed and he had taken the cover off the new pillow and put Port's pillow back on his bed. I asked him what he was doing and he said he wanted to put two pillows in one case. And he wanted the pillow back.

Too late, kid.

I told him no, he couldn't have it back and he couldn't put two pillows in one case. He asked about stacking two pillows on top of each other so I gave him Port's old pillow and he pitched a fit. I told him to go to sleep and left him in his room. He cried and cried - Hubby and I both went in there to tell him to calm down and go to sleep. About 10 minutes later he came out of his room, marched up to me in the kitchen with his little hands all balled up into fists and he told me that he was going to "fuss and cry all night long if I didn't give him that pillow back!!"

Hubby and I burst into laughter. 

We made him go back to bed - it's a good thing we both have a sense of humor. But 10 minutes later he was in there coughing pretty much non-stop. I brought him some water and when I walked in I discovered he was laying on the floor. I asked him why and he said he refused to sleep in his bed. *shakes head* Oh the DRAMA! I made him get in bed and once again I left. 

10 minutes later he was still coughing, so I brought him a cough drop. When I left his room, I noticed that I had stepped over a piece of paper on the floor in the hallway just in front of his door. Thinking it was some random drawing that had some how made it's way to the hallway, I picked it up to throw it away. But there was some writing on it...

"Dear Mom, 

Im stupid! Remember when I refused the pillow

Youll hate me by now.

<3 Kiddo Fry"

So, the teen years are going to be smooth sailing, right?

Until,

D :)

In Your Eyes | NaBloPoMo day 25

What is it about Thanksgiving that makes us cook SO MUCH food?  I swear, it must be some sort of altered genetics that have been environmentally bred into us throughout the generations. Thursday was really just like any other day; I was cooking for the same 4 people I cook for every day, and yet I made enough food to feed at least 8 people, and probably more than that. And I didn't even make the stuffed jalapenos I was planning to have for appetizers. 

Ah well.

Today was spent recovering. I had so many bizarre dreams last night and I am not sure why. I think I may have been on carb overload. Today I enjoyed myself again, but starting tomorrow I am going to do a bit of a cleanse - not so much in an official way, I just need to cut waaaay back on the yeast and sugar, drink more water, and get more veggies and clean foods in for a while.  My friend, Kim, is starting a 10 day juice regimen and she will be drinking only fresh made juice for that time. I am thinking about trying to juice for one meal a day and see how that works for me. I am too dependent on protein to go on an all out juice fast; I just don't think I could make it. But I am hoping the increase in veggies and fruit will supplement some imbalances I am certain I have. 

And I need to do this now because it is almost time to start making cinnamon rolls...

oh yes. :-D

Until,

D :)

All At Once

"They say women, we're the stronger. Somehow we always make it through. 

Well, that ain't what I feel right now. I don't even think it's true."

Tomorrow...in a couple of days...whatever. lol Sorry to leave you hanging. I somehow lost yesterday in a sea of frustration and whiny children. Such is life. ;)

So anyway, my wonderful friend and gorgeous face behind Body By Dottie, set up a challenge on Facebook to eat clean for 30 days. The challenge started on September 6th, so we are only a little more than a week in. The first day didn't go so well for me because the day before we were dealing with this.

Yes, that would be a Central Texas wildfire less than a mile from my house leading to a mandatory evacuation. We had about 30 minutes to gather up the things that we just couldn't leave behind, cram them in our 1 working car, and drive...anywhere. 

Stressful? Yes. Scary? Yes. {excuse me while I toss this clump of hair in the trash}

So yeah, that was fun. Thankfully we were able to come back to our smokey house with no electricity later that night, but the next morning we almost had to evacuate a second time when there was a flare up in the same location. 

Needless to say, I was not concerned with what I was eating on the first day of the 30 day challenge. 

The second day I did much better though. When I decided to do this, it was mainly in support of my friend, and also to cheer on other friends who were trying it out for the first time. I really believe in clean eating - and while the "program" that is used in the book for weight loss is not something I really need right now, I know that it always helps to bring awareness back to what I eat, and I always eat healthier when I make time to pay attention and plan it out a little. 

So my plan really was not a plan, just a vow to "do better" which, given my current circumstances, is quite an accomplishment.  My first step was to try to limit my refined sugar intake or, at best, take it out all together. My afternoon soda habit was getting out of hand again, and so the sodas had to go. I thought, while I was at it, I would eliminate bread and yeast too, but I realized that I actually don't consume much of that anyway. 

I made myself eat breakfast (I am normally not hungry for several hours after I wake up); two eggs with some homemade garden veggie salsa. For lunch I had my usual big salad ("it's like a salad, only bigger"), a snack of turkey and cheese when the boy got home from school, and then a normal, clean dinner. I was pretty hungry all day but I figured it was because of the lack of sugar. Day 2 went about the same, and with the same intense hunger and some shakiness. I realized that by cutting out sugar and bread/yeast, I wasn't really eating enough calories. And I don't need to lose any more weight! So on the evening of the second day I made a loaf of homemade honey oat whole wheat bread and some coconut butter. The bread, coconut butter and a drizzle of honey along side my eggs in the morning makes all the difference! No more hunger (though I am not opposed to a little throughout the day) no more shakiness and lots of satisfaction. 

I shot a wedding on Saturday and so the clean eating pretty much went out the window that day. But that is ok; the great thing about it is that it's super easy to get back on track when you are ready. And on high stress days, it's nice to treat myself to something comforting, knowing it's not going to be hard to overcome. I hope in the coming weeks I will be more disciplined, and can experience better skin and more energy in the process. I will keep you posted. :)

Until,

D :)

Fall to Pieces

I was going to blog today.

I was going to blog about how much baking I did last week and all the ingredients I went through - 16 pans (give or take) of cinnamon rolls uses up a lot of butter (about 5 pounds), flour (about 10 pounds) and sugar (about 5 pounds).  It was fun though and I am having so much fun handing out pans to friends and family. I love cooking for people!


I was going to blog about my parent's visit and how great it was. There was good food and presents and fun with a gingerbread house. 

 But then...

 This morning happened.

We got up to find that Kiddo had vomited some time in the night, and had slept that way for quite a while. His tummy has been "off" all day.

 Oh dear.

 And Port has a fever and possibly a tummy ache - but he can't tell me for sure what is wrong.

 And I have been feeling quite a bit queasy myself today.  My head feels like it's filled with jello.

And then...Hubby went for a bike ride and stopped on the way home to do some last minute shopping, and returned to his car to find that his bike had been stolen.  And if you recall, our car was *just* broken into a few weeks ago and his cell phone, a small radio and 2 light stands and umbrellas were stolen then.

 I am trying to piece together what is left of my holiday spirit, but I am finding it difficult to hold it all together.

 I see small, beautiful moments and lovely places in all the chaos.

 But in all I am pretty bummed and not feeling like I should.

 I need better glue.

 Or I may end up looking like this on Christmas Day.

What gets you in the holiday spirit?

Until,
D

Bring Me To Life

 {beautiful sky, shot with my iPhone, somewhere outside of Crowley, Louisiana}

I am sitting here tonight eating some banana pudding. This is a fantastic recipe! I usually just make banana pudding with nilla wafers, bananas and well, pudding. I never would have thought to add anything to that. But holy moly, adding cream cheese?!?! Genius!

Anyway, we came home today after a very long 4 day trip and I am just flat out exhausted.  I had to make banana pudding tonight because I accidentally left a huge bunch of bananas here instead of taking them on the trip like I had planned. Port eats bananas a lot - they are one of the few things he will eat on a regular basis so I try to keep some in the house at all times. I left the bananas and the other fruit I bought for him (grapes and apples) here and when we got back today the whole bunch was on the verge of being too ripe.  My freezer is already full of over ripe bananas that I will someday use for banana bread, but I didn't want to toss these in there too so I made the pudding. So yummy!

It was fun visiting with the family but I am so glad to be home.  I don't much care for living out of a suitcase (or in this case a duffel bag. I don't own a suitcase!).  Tomorrow I get to spend the better part of my morning with a beautiful newborn boy as I am doing a newborn session. I am so excited! I also have another newborn session in Dallas coming up sometime in the next week or so.

Some day I will have a chance to sit down and breathe. I am thinking it will be sometime around February.

Until,
D :)

Mental Jukebox Selection today: Evanescence, Bring Me To Life. I can't get this one out of my head today.

Confused

Happy Monday everyone!

Oh wait - it's Tuesday isn't it?

Darn holiday weekends! They get me all confused! Never mind the fact that I was up at 5AM with the $#&($#@(#@!)!@ dog, and again at 6 with the baby. *yawn*

We had a lovely 4th of July weekend where we basically did nothing. lol. It was good though, in a strange, slacker sort of way. On Friday Hubby and Happy took the kayak to Wimberley and spent the day on the river. Saturday Hubby took Kiddo out for a short paddle in a local lake. Saturday night, I worked a very big, very interesting party out at a another very fancy home. Thankfully it was close by, so getting off at 11:30 wasn't that big of a deal. The party was very cool - a fundraiser event for a couple of charities. There were TONS of people, tons of kids, tons of food and tons of VIPs. A "teen" celebrity from a show on ABC Family was in attendance and provided me with my first in person experience with a mob of teenage girls devouring their celebrity crush. It was quite a scene. For the first time ever, I felt like a real paparazzi as I was trying to get his photograph without getting in his way. Of course, if I were a real paparazzi - I guess I wouldn't care about getting in his way, now would I?

Anyway, the party was a huge success, despite blowing the neighborhood electrical transformer. Thankfully it was right before the fireworks display, so the big boom and shower of sparks sort of fit in. And, without any pesky lights from the house and other homes on the street, the fireworks were that much more dramatic. See, a win win for all. ;-)

My lovely friend Jen assisted me at the party. It is always fun working with her. And it was so nice to get out of the house, have fun and make some good money in the process. :)

We didn't do anything on Sunday night. We were all pretty exhausted from the weekend so we treated it like any normal night. Of course, my entire street shot fireworks until almost midnight, much to the amusement of all the dogs in the neighborhood. Thankfully the boys weren't bothered by the noise. I felt so bad on Monday though, when Kiddo realized that we had "missed" the fireworks on the 4th. He was pretty upset. I guess next year (and also at New Year's) we need to take the boys to see fireworks. This was actually the first year in a looooong time that the city even allowed fireworks in the neighborhood streets - it would have been fun for the boys had I planned ahead and picked something up. Bad mommy! :(

It was a good food weekend though. On Saturday, we made ribs on the grill. For a few hours before hand, I marinated the ribs in cooking sherry, balsamic vinaigrette and Worcestershire sauce. Hubby seasoned with garlic salt and lemon pepper while they were grilling and they turned out amazingly good! They had a wonderful flavor that I think came from the marinade. I will have to remember that next time too. I also made homemade cinnamon vanilla ice cream and homemade apple pie. I think I will ask for a nice ice cream maker for Christmas. The one we have is really cheap and it is so hard to get it to turn and keep it turning. Then once the ice cream starts to firm up, it won't turn anymore. We have to either sit there and manually turn it or just pour the semi soft-serve in bowls and finish the freezing process in the freezer. On Sunday we grilled burgers and had them with garden fresh cucumber/tomato salad and more apple pie and ice cream for dessert. YUM!

Today I am making a strawberry/banana bundt bread. I had some bananas and strawberries going bad - and I wasn't able to add the bananas to the collection in my already overflowing freezer. I hope it turns out good; as usual I made a lot of changes to the recipe.

...a little later...

Delish! Here is my recipe for your pleasure!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray pan with cooking spray (can use 2 loaf pans, muffin tins or what I used, a Bundt pan)

Ingredients: 4 eggs, slightly beaten.
2 cups sugar (I used 1c brown, 1 c white)
~1 1/2 cups strawberries, chopped/mashed
3 mashed bananas
splash of vanilla (maybe a teaspoon?)
1 cup oil (I used coconut oil, but any will do, and if I had applesauce I would have used 1/2cup oil and 1/2cup apple sauce)
3 cups flour
1 t baking soda
1 1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t salt
1 cup + 2-3T rolled oats (divided)

In one bowl, mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt until combined. in a mixer bowl combine eggs, sugar, strawberries, bananas, vanilla and oil. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Slowly add in flour mixture and stir until just combined. Stir in oats until evenly distributed.

Sprinkle 2-3 T of oats in the bottom of the Bundt pan and sprinkle another 1-2 T of brown sugar on top of that. If using loaf pans or muffin tins, do this step last. Pour batter into prepared pans.

For the Bundt pan, it took exactly 1 hour and it was perfect. Loaf pans should be about the same, maybe a little less than an hour; I would bake the muffins about 20 minutes (if they are regular size). Check with a toothpick to make sure.

This is the link to the original recipe, though as you can see I changed it up a little. ;-) http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Strawnana-Bread/Detail.aspx

Hope you have a wonderful Monday, er uh, Tuesday!

Until,
D :)

Morning Glory

The baby started screaming at about 3:45am. I pushed our bedroom door closed to block out some of the sound and crawled back into bed. It was too darn early. He screamed off and on for about an hour, until I could take it no more. No one in the house was sleeping, and it just didn't seem like he was going to let up so I went in and got him.

Of course, there was absolutely nothing wrong. He was sweet as pie the minute I picked him up. I changed his diaper and put him back to bed. Oh man, that made him mad! Sadly, it woke everyone else up again, but after about 30 more minutes he finally quieted down. He started back up again just before 7 and I was successfully ignoring him until Kiddo started shaking me.

Every day Kiddo and I go 20 rounds about him getting dressed. He is perfectly content to sit around all day in his pajamas, and usually the only way I can get him dressed is if we plan to go somewhere. So when I tell him to get dressed, his usual response is, "why, are we going somewhere?" My usual response is "no, we're not going anywhere." and then he always asks "then why do I have to get dressed?" and my response is always, "because it is what you are supposed to do."

The child who never, ever wants to get dressed on any day of the week, decided this morning at 7:15 was the perfect time to get dressed, he said, "because that's what I'm supposed to do." GAH! He never listens to me when I need him to get dressed, but after a night of no sleep while I am trying to acquire some precious dozing time, suddenly my words sink in?!? Seriously. So he couldn't find any clean shorts and he needed me to get up and get some. I told him he could run around nekkid for all I cared, just let me sleep!

That lasted all of about 5 minutes.

So I got up, turned off all the fans in the bedrooms, turned up the temp on the thermostat and rescued the baby from the crib. I have been craving a healthy muffin type treat lately, so I sufficiently heated up the house making some Morning Glory muffins. Oh man, they are so good!
I based it off a recipe I found on Allrecipes.com, but changed it up a lot to accommodate our tastes and what I had on hand. So, in case you needed to know, here is the recipe!

Morning Glory Muffins

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup bread flour
~ 1-2 Tbls ground flax seed
~ 1/4 cup wheat germ
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 tsp baking soda
2 heaping tsp cinnamon
~ 1/4 tsp nutmeg
~ 1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt (maybe a little less)
1 1/2 cups grated carrots (this was 3 medium sized carrots)
1 1/2 cups grated apple (about 6 small granny smiths)
3/4 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cranberries
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (maybe a little more)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly oil muffin tins or spray with cooking spray (I don't recco using papers - these are kind of sticky).

In one large bowl (no mixer needed), combine dry ingredients, including sugars (not the fruits or coconut). Mix thoroughly. In a separate bowl, combine the fruits, coconut, and shredded items with the eggs and vanilla. Mix until combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix all until combined.

Bake for 10-12 minutes for mini muffins, 18 minutes for regular sized muffins. I made 24 minis and 11 regular sized muffins.

These were so good (not overly sweet) and the kids loved them. Next time I may try adding some zucchini as well. Gotta get the veggies in somehow! Enjoy!

~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~

Port ate so badly yesterday, I was determined to do something different with him today. Yesterday I think he went through 3/4 of a package of hot dogs. It was awful. But it was all he would eat! So I made the muffins today and he had a few of those, then for lunch, when I fixed Kiddo's grilled cheese and fruit, I made up a half of a grilled cheese sandwich for Port too. Then in his fruit bowl (because he doesn't like or is not willing to try cherries and strawberries) I put frozen blueberries. He used to eat them, but hasn't had/wanted them lately and today for some reason he gobbled them up. He asked for more and more, and I obliged, and in the process he ate almost all of the grilled cheese too. He totally protested his plate at first, but then just gave in and ate. Hooray for Momma!

It's not perfect health food, but it's much better than hot dogs and nuggets. blech.

It didn't work with the quesadillas at dinner, but I guess you win some and you lose some.

Tonight I have another gig shooting a fancy party; this time it is at a nice restaurant at The Domain in Austin. Hopefully things will go smoothly.

Until,
D :)

Frantic

I'm here!

Busy week.

Parents coming in tomorrow.
Rest of the fam on Saturday.
Little Port's 2nd birthday on Saturday.
Cleaning
Laundry
Gardening
Yard Work
COOKING
Cooking
Cooking

The menu for Saturday: Strawberry Birthday Cake with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
German Chocolate Cake pops
German Chocolate Truffles (some dipped in cocoa, some in powdered sugar)
cream cheese toffee apple dip with sliced apples

Spring Salad (OMG you have to try this salad! greens, red onion, strawberries and praline pecans with a strawberry balsamic vinaigrette. MMMMM!)
Orzo Pasta Salad with Kalamata olives and feta
buffalo chicken dip
pigs in a blanket
assorted raw veggies with ranch
buttered rosemary rolls
spinach dip with herb crackers

I think it's a pretty good variety and all so very yummy.

Still need to work on taxes.
Still have lots of image editing to do

oh, and I probably should sleep too...

Until,
D :)

Come Back to Me

I refuse to let a whole week go by without blogging here. Mercy - I don't know what is wrong with me lately, blogging just seems to be the last thing on my list. The funny thing is, it is almost the most important thing on my list for many reasons. The main reason being that it is my own little therapist couch, where I can tell my stories and vent my frustrations and whoever wants to listen (or read) can and whoever doesn't can just click to something else. Thank goodness for freedom!

I have had 2 culinary triumphs this week. The first, on Fat Tuesday, my first ever attempt at cajun food (except for the occasional grits. lol), crawfish etouffee! I got a great recipe from my friend Shannon over at Rants, Raves and Recipes, and the next thing I knew I was making my first roux! What a trip. It was definitely not something I will try again unless I know I will have uninterrupted time to stir for about 30-45 minutes. The boys kind of made that part difficult.

But, what made the whole thing sooooo nice and easy was my beautiful, stunning, supportive, wonderful....

Lodge Color Porcelain Enamel On Cast Iron dutch oven I received for Christmas! Wheeee!

Can I just tell you how much I love this thing?!??! Wowzers! It was so nice to work with.

Anyway, the recipe was great. I added a couple of table spoons of bacon grease to the roux and some salt overall and the etouffee was perfect. Kiddo liked it pretty well, especially considering how picky he has been lately, but Port wouldn't touch it. I was kind of nervous about giving him shellfish anyway, so his refusal didn't hurt my feelings any.

My second triumph was last night. I made my usual Parmesan crusted salmon and normally I would make rice and some sort of veggie. But since the night before we had rice with our etouffee, I decided to make some pasta instead.

I like to keep things interesting like that.

I had some things in the fridge that needed to be used so I made up my own little concoction. I chopped some yellow onion and sauteed it in butter until it began to soften. Then I tossed in a bunch of sliced mushrooms and sauteed them for a couple of minutes as well. I added some kosher salt, let it all get yummy and lovely and then I added in about 1 cup of chicken broth, 1 cup of heavy cream, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan (the green can is fine) and 4 oz (1/2 block) of cream cheese. I seasoned it all with a ton of fresh cracked black pepper, a little garlic salt (because I forgot to add minced garlic) and some dried basil. When the cream cheese melted and everything simmered for a little bit (and thickened) I tossed in about a cup of halved cherry tomatoes and stirred them around until warm (you don't want to cook them too long or they will start to break down).

O
M
G

It was sooooooo GOOOOOD!!!! I poured the cream/veggie mixture over fettuccine noodles and put my salmon fillet on top. I drizzled a little more of the sauce over the whole thing and it was absolutely to. die. for! (if I do say so myself!)

Mmmmm, now I want some more! Too bad I used up all the mushrooms and tomatoes.

It was wonderful to make a couple of great dishes that my family enjoyed. I just love feeding people (and myself, hee hee!).

Things around here are starting to get busy. Next week I am shooting 2 weddings. I am almost fully booked for March with sessions and am now booking some April stuff too. I have to say, I give God all the glory! He is so good! We were in serious financial trouble this month, we prayed and prayed and did what we are supposed to do, and He provided. I just love how that all works!

Little Port man refused a nap today. It should be an interesting evening.

Oh, and just for record sake, some crazy yahoo intentionally flew a jet into one of the office buildings right down the street from Hubby's office today. Before he did this horrible thing, he set his own house on fire, and left some rambling manifesto on his website explaining why he did what he did.

My prayers go out to all involved, from the pilot to the onlookers who will be forever affected by this tragedy. Suicide is such a selfish act. It leaves so much heartache and mental suffering in it's wake.

And with that I leave you with even more poop. The real kind this time - poor little Port had a massive, blow out poopy diaper this evening. He was eating his dinner and it leaked out and he accidentally got it on his hands. Poor little guy came into the kitchen all scrunchy faced and frantically trying to wipe it off. I, having no idea what had happened, fetched a wet napkin and started to clean him up (I thought he just got some pear on his hands or something). When I realized what I was cleaning I took him to the bedroom to change him. I discovered that he was absolutely covered in it, and it was. freaking. him. out. He did not like it one bit!

It was quite traumatic getting him cleaned up, and he still fussed for a few minutes after, as if he was unsure I had done a good job. I told Hubby that, while I hate that he was traumatized by the whole thing, I was so happy he was traumatized! I am just thankful he found it repulsive and not fun. I don't need any more "painters" in my house!

You're welcome. ;-)

Until,
D :)

Chilly Down

Greetings Company Girls and Beloved Regulars!

Thankfully today did not start as early as the last 2 Friday mornings, but after a week of pretty consistent 7:15 wake ups, this morning's 6:15 was kind of a shock. I believe I have a lightning/thunder storm to blame; a couple of the cracks of thunder were loud enough to shake the house.

So *yawn* forgive me if I am dragging a little.

How was your week? Mine was alright. I have been a bit on the emotional side of things this week, what with the hormone surge and whatnot. And the Kiddo and I have been duke-ing it out on a daily basis, so my brain and my sanity are about gone.

I am so looking forward to the weekend though - I have a holiday family session to shoot in the morning and a wedding tomorrow evening. It should be absolutely gorgeous, fall like weather and I am stoked to be out in it all day!

After this morning's rain it has been cold, cold all day here, so I am fighting the urge to bake and cook. Haha! Well, I guess I am not fighting it too hard - I have red beans cooking in the crock pot and fresh pumpkin roasting in the oven to make a pumpkin puree. I am dreaming and drooling over all the pumpkin goodies I will be able to make. mmmmmmm! I have to say it is so very nice though to be able to run the oven for a few hours and still keep the house cool by just cracking a couple of windows. YAY!

Well the baby started off the day by falling into the coffee table and busting either his upper lip or gums (he won't let me get in there to look) so I have his and my bloody jammies to deal with. He is totally fine - only cried for a minute at most; but he looked pretty funny until the swelling went down. And since I have a load of cloth diapers in the wash I better get them finished up so I can get the jammies in there before the stain sets.

Ah the joys of motherhood!

I hope you have a wonderful week! Thanks for stopping by.

Until,
D :)

Early Winter

I am so enjoying the weather here lately. The 100+ temps have vanished and the 80s are back! The mornings have been cooler too - high 60s and low 70s. Ahh, bring on the fall!! The boys have been playing outside, the windows have been open and when Port naps, the back door has been open too. Of course, I don't particularly care for all the flies that like to come in the back door, but I'll put up with them for the breeze blowing through my living and dining room area.

It is less than 100 days until Christmas now...98 I believe. It's not too early to pull out the holiday music, right? I mean 98 days of O' Holy Night is so not overkill. Who doesn't love a rousing version of Go Tell it On the Mountain at any time of year?!?

So yeah, with the cooler weather and the dry breezes and the smell of cinnamon and pumpkin spice coming from Starbucks, I have the holidays on the brain. And my itch to bake is starting to get annoying.

I am trying to hold off though for a few more weeks - trying to get my system back at a healthy level before bombarding it with pastries and chocolate and loads of sugar...

Oh the sugar!

Did you know sugar is in everything?!? EVERYTHING! Did you know trying to eat sugar free (and without all that nasty artificial sweetener junk) is next to impossible without going a bit nutso in the process?

Now try to take out bread, yeast and all starches too. mmmhmmm. Tough! There isn't much left my friends!

I've been doing ok I guess with the sugar part - I have cut waaaaay down. And I am ok without bread. But when I try to take away pasta and rice - oh NO! That so does not work for me. So I am just trying to cut back on it all, eat healthier and more natural, and overload myself with veggies when I can.

Why am I doing this you ask? Well, in all my busy-ness of late I let myself get really run down and really sick. I was eating alright, but my cravings for sweets and sugar were out of control and I was inhibiting my immune system by feeding the yeast in my body.

We all have yeast in our systems. It's a necessary evil I guess. But sometimes it gets out of control and it can make you really really sick.

Thus my situation. When, about a month ago, I broke out in a bad case of oral thrush, I knew something was very wrong. (cuz uh, I am not pregnant nor nursing and that kind of thing is usually reserved for those situations???) And I realized that I had been experiencing lots of dizziness, headaches, weakness and nausea that were out of the norm for me. (go ahead, plug all that into WebMD - you know you want to) The worst part was the foggy head. I just couldn't concentrate on anything.

Anyway, I had to do something about it, so I am taking some herbal remedies including Oregano Oil and trying to eat more appropriately. I am also putting about a teaspoon of coconut oil in my coffee each morning.

I am finally starting to feel better! The thrush is gone, and the unrelenting allergy symptoms I had been suffering have all but vanished (I was taking benadryll every 4 hours around the clock). I have lost about 5 pound this week alone and my appetite has dwindled significantly. And, my skin cleared up a bit too.

But now I am reading that oregano oil may work for a little while, but that the yeast will adapt and come back. Hmm, we shall see.

I need to knock this stuff out - I've got things to bake!

Until,
D ;)

Say What You Need to Say

Dinner was just so good tonight, I just have to share with you. I am sorry, I didn't take any pictures - you'll have to use your imagination. Anyway, I had a package of frozen whole chicken legs and a bag of dried black beans. I have never cooked black beans before, so I did a "quick soak" and then after put them in a pot with some chopped bell pepper, onion and garlic, then added chicken stock and a little spoon full of bacon grease (don't be hatin'). I let that simmer for a couple of hours on the stove this afternoon (oh and it smelled sooooo good!). Then when the chicken was thawed, I put it in a big skillet with some garlic salt and lemon pepper and browned it. Then I tossed in a can of Rotel (chopped tomatoes and green chilies), a can of corn and 2 cups of the black beans. I covered that and let it simmer until the chicken was done. Meanwhile, I sauteed about 1/2 cup of chopped onion in some coconut oil, then when it was soft I poured in a cup of uncooked rice. I stirred that until the rice was coated in the oil and started to brown a little. Then I added 2 cups of chicken broth and brought it to a boil. I covered that and lowered the heat all the way down and let it simmer until it was done (about 10 minutes or so). Served the chicken and the corn/beans/tomatoes over the rice and added a little sprinkle of cumin over the top - YUM! All of it was based off of a couple of recipes I found on Allrecipes - I so love that site! So if you have a chance to try it, do!

Next time I will use boneless chicken though.

We had a pretty rough morning this morning. Port decided to start fussing at about 5:30am, and when he still hadn't stopped 20 minutes later I just got up with him. That makes for such a long day. He didn't nap well either. He slept for about 2 hours, but he woke up a couple times during and fussed. By his bed time tonight he was exhausted. I don't know if he's getting hot in the night or what. Our air conditioner isn't running as much due to the lower night time outdoor temps, and at times it gets pretty stuffy in here. But it hasn't really been that much warmer in the house.

This afternoon I caught a cute "conversation" between the boys. This went on for about 5 minutes.



Finally, a little Kiddo speak for you...

Tonight just before bed I told Kiddo he needed to go wash his face and go potty. I asked him, "do you have any clean washcloths in the bathroom?"

His reply, "Go Fish".

What a comedian!

Until,
D :)

Honor To Us All

I had intended on posting this yesterday, but Blogger was having technical issues and I just didn't feel like trying to find a back door into the posting page. Anyway, I wanted to share a little Kiddo-speak with you.

About a week ago I was getting dressed in the bathroom. Both kids were with me (*sigh* when does that stop?) and after, uh, admiring me, Kiddo looked at himself in the mirror said,

"Someday, when I'm older, like 35, I am going to have big boobies too!"

I hope I remember to work this story into my toast at his wedding...

~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~


In other news, I received a fabulous award! I just love bloggy bling! Miss Vick, over at Hanging By a Nerve, bestowed this honor upon me, and I am instructed to pass it along to 5 people and also list 5 obsessions for the accompanying meme.

Five obsessions...hmm. This is a toughie. Obsessions tend to be negative things by definition, but I kind of like mine, so I am hesitant to post them. But I will play along. *wink* In no particular order...

1. Caffeine: I would say coffee, but really it goes beyond that. As unhealthy as it is, I am obsessed with coffee, Dr. Pepper and chocolate. I must have some of all three every day. When I finish my coffee in the morning, I immediately start thinking about my lunch time Dr. Pepper. Every day it takes a lot of willpower to wait a few hours to have one. I am thinking about it right now...ahhhhh!

2. Cooking: I love to cook, love to create new dishes and love to look at recipes. I love reading about cooking, looking at food photos, being in the kitchen and working on anything having to do with food. It even translates into my insane desire to garden. I love baking just as much as anything else, and rarely ever follow a recipe exactly (even though in baking you are supposed to). When I look at recipes I can usually "taste" the food as I read the ingredients - and the taste in my mind is usually pretty spot on with determining if something is going to be good or not.

3. The Internet: Yes, it is unhealthy. I know. I love everything about it though - I have made so many amazing friends and met so many interesting people. It has opened worlds to me that I would have never discovered without it. It has connected me to people I may have never found otherwise. It has given me an outlet for my thoughts and feelings and stories. It has allowed me to figure out things about myself. It has given me opportunities that I never would have had, ever.

4. Photography: I suppose this is a given. I love capturing moments in time, memories and the little things that we all too soon forget. I love the details; the beauty that I can bring out in everyone, big and small. I love that I can almost always make someone feel special and attractive when I take their picture. I love getting to know children and developing a connection with them during my sessions. I love examining and documenting every inch and angle of newborns, capturing the youth and dreams of older children and the wisdom and experiences in the eyes of the adults.

5. My Kids: I am a constant worrier. I fear I am messing it all up. I know I only have one shot at raising my kids and I want to do the best I can for them. I know I can never do enough and yet every day they astound me with their intelligence, their wit, their cleverness and their love. They make me laugh and cry and scream every day. They make me crazier than I've ever been and they make me love more than I ever thought possible. They are my life; the air I breathe and what makes my heart keep beating.

So there you have it. Those are my obsessions. They're not too bad in the grand scheme of things I guess.

I have to tag 5 people now - my first inclination is to tag my favorite blogs, but most of them are seriously big and have tons of awards already. And I would have tagged Vick and Julia - but they have both been tagged already. So that leaves me with really only 3 clear choices.

1. Rachel Anne of Home Sanctuary. Her blog truly is Fabulous! Every week day there is something new. She has a wonderful sense of humor, she's real, honest and just as nice in person as she comes across on her blog (maybe even more so).

2. Shari with Spot O Wine. Shari's blog is relatively new, but her recipes and wine knowledge set her apart from the ordinary food/wine blog. She's got a great sense of humor and funny writing style. And even though we've know each other since high school, I am enjoying getting to know her better through her blog.

3. Jill with Nalley News. I just love Jill's blog. She is one of those crafty, creative mommas that I wish I could be. Shoot, if I could only come up with a 3rd of the stuff she does, my kids would be so much better off. She takes beautiful pictures of her girls too.

Now, there are others that would be great if they actually posted something every now and then *cough, cough* you know who you are... and there are also the greats that have more accolades, readers and awards than anyone can imagine (Pioneer Woman, Smitten Kitchen, Chicken and Cheese to name a few) and I have too many other favorites to mention.

Thank you Vick, for making my day! I am truly honored.

Until,
D :)

Sweetness

Hello my Company Girls and Readers!
I can't believe it's Friday again. I swear the weeks go faster and faster!

We have nothing on the horizon for the weekend - I will no doubt be strapped to the computer designing some marketing pieces for my biz. I need to jump start things before the summer heat really takes hold - it is hard to book sessions when it is 100 degrees by 9am! lol!

I can hear my 4 year old getting into some mischief in the hall bathroom, but I am choosing to ignore it. It has been a long day already...

Anyway, yesterday I mentioned some of my recent cooking triumphs so I thought I would share them in more detail today. I absolutely love cooking (most of the time) and it is really fun for me to try new things. And I am by no means an expert or anything, I just love food and feeding my family! (my extended family can attest to that - all the stuff I make on the holidays is ridiculous!) Anyway, Hubby has requested lasagna some time last week, so on my last grocery trip I picked up a little tub of ricotta cheese hoping I would get around to making some before it went bad. I have been dying to try Pioneer Woman's version of Lasagna, but seem to never have all the ingredients on hand. When I decided to make the lasagna, this time was no different, but I loosely followed her recipe anyway.

{oh and by the way, just in case you might be wondering, I don't typically count calories when cooking... lol!}

Following her recipe, I used a pound of ground beef (less than what she called for) and a roll of Owens breakfast sausage. I browned it in a skillet and added some garlic after it was brown. I drained the fat, and because I didn't have any canned tomato paste, I used a small can of diced tomatoes and a jar of spaghetti sauce. For the cheese mixture, I didn't have quite enough ricotta (she used cottage cheese, but I like ricotta better), so I used a little less parmesan than she called for and I only had a little dried parsley so I made up the difference with dried basil. Then, when doing all the layering, I followed her order (noodles, ricotta mixture, sliced cheese, meat mixture) but on top of the sliced cheese layer I sprinkled in some shredded asiago cheese that I happened to have in the fridge. I didn't have a lot of mozzarella, and I was worried about not having enough cheese - but the added asiago was incredible! When it was all together it didn't look "wet" enough so I poured another jar of spaghetti sauce over the top and put a little water in the corners for the noodles (they were uncooked). I topped it with more parmesan cheese and put it in the oven for about 45 minutes to cook the noodles. The flavor was so amazing - when I first saw her recipe I scoffed at the sausage, but it really adds a new flavor dimension to plain ol' lasagna. And I think the basil/parsley mix was a good call too. Hubby raved about it!

So a couple of nights ago I wanted to cook some salmon. I try to make it once every couple of weeks anyway, and I always cook it the same. I usually put a parmesan crust on it and serve it with rice and sauteed zucchini. However, this time, I was almost out of parmesan because of the lasagna, so I didn't have enough for the crust, and we have been eating zucchini pretty much non stop since the garden started producing so I was ready for something different. I decided to look at salmon recipes on the net and came across a couple that looked interesting, but I didn't have the ingredients for any one recipe. Of course a couple of blah, blah, blah cream sauce recipes stuck in my head so I thought about how I could do something like that. I am a sucker for cream sauce! Anyway, I was thinking about the garden and what I had growing and what I could use. I am discovering that with the herbs I am growing, if I use them, they grow better. If I don't they grow all weird and scraggly. I had harvested a good bit of green beans already so I started researching how to cook fresh green beans (I am a canned green bean kinda girl). The recurring theme seemed to involve butter, lemon and garlic. Suddenly it came to me!

I took the salmon fillet and sprinkled it with a little garlic salt and lemon pepper, put it in a skillet with a little butter and coconut oil (the expeller pressed - it doesn't have any flavor, but the regular kind probably would have been yummy too; or you can use olive oil or nothing at all), then squeezed some fresh lemon over it while it was cooking. Just before flipping it, I chopped some fresh dill from the garden and sprinkled it over the fish. While that was cooking I boiled a pot of water and blanched the green beans for about 4 minutes. When they were done I scooped them out into a skillet with a little butter and sauteed them with some kosher salt, garlic powder (I was out of fresh), lemon and a little bacon for flavor. I tossed some pasta in the blanch water. Then I took the cooked fish out of the skillet and put some diced onion in. I let that cook for a couple of minutes then deglazed the pan with a little white wine. Once that had reduced (took maybe a few minutes), I poured in about a cup of half and half, a little chicken stock (maybe 1/2-1 cup) and added about 3-4 ounces of cream cheese. I tossed in a good bit of chopped fresh dill and the rest of the parmesan cheese I had (probably about a tablespoon). Then I added salt and lots of fresh ground black pepper. Let that cook for a few minutes while the pasta was finishing up and then put the fish back in the sauce. I served the fish and cream sauce over the pasta and the green beans on the side.

OMGoodness the sauce was so yummy!! All the flavors went well together and the lemon and dill tied it all in with the green beans. Hubby said they were the best green beans he'd had, and I really liked them too.

mmmm, I am getting hungry just thinking about it!

Anyway, as you can tell I was proud of myself for making it all up as I went along, timing it just right and it turning into something really yummy. I'm not usually that on top of things these days! Mommy brain rules around here. ;-)

A couple of weird things from yesterday and today...

Yesterday morning a solicitor came to the door at 830am. I barely had a cup of coffee in me and was still in jammies so there was no way I was answering the door. Plus, we keep a sign over our doorbell that says "please do not knock or ring the bell, baby is sleeping" and he knocked and sent our dog into a very loud tizzy. I was a bit annoyed at his inability to follow a simple request. He knocked again after a few minutes of the dog barking, sending her into round two of fantastic ferocious beastly mania, so I rounded up the boys and left the room. A little while later I had to go outside to measure something and noticed - he had taken some sidewalk chalk from the driveway and wrote in big letters "THE BOOKMAN WAS HERE".

uh...

alrighty then.

Today I took the boys to Costco (after an errand to Kohl's and a stop at Krispy Kreme for national donut day - what was I thinking?!?!?) and as we were walking past the clothing section I noticed a woman browsing one of the tables. Both her arms were COMPLETELY covered from shoulder to wrist with large silver bracelets. They were all different styles; some with jewels, some with dangling bits and some with intricate designs. She must have had 100 on each arm. It was totally bizarre.

So I just happened to have my old rusty snap shot camera in the diaper bag and caught these at Krispy Kreme today...
yes Chocolate Milk and a Chocolate donut. I am such a good mom.

And also in great parenting moves, Port got his own donut. He really enjoyed it.

really, really enjoyed it...
seriously, I couldn't get it away from him.
after that shot he started kicking his feet and squealing.... "a gah, a gah!, a GAH!!" I don't know what that means, but Kiddo was not amused.
He finished his chocolate milk anyway.

Until,
D :)

PS> If you are a fan of podcasts - Musing Mommies episode 11 is up and running! This week we discussed home organization and home party businesses! Next week, music for kids - what they listen to, what they should and shouldn't listen to and what makes us nuts! Got any ideas or opinions on that?? Please leave us a comment here or on our site, Musing Mommies! Thanks!

Oh yes, and don't forget to head over to Company Girl and submit your pictures!! The deadline has been extended and the guidelines changed! Now, you can retain your copyright on any image you submit that gets picked for the book! YAY!!!

Simple As That

gonna blog today gonna blog today gonna blog today...

I've had a pretty productive little day today if I do say so myself. I ordered some new vinyl lettering for the back of my car (business stuff), did a couple loads of laundry, did a massive overhaul of the kitchen (it was a total disaster!), came up with another brilliant business idea and made a purchase toward achieving that goal, developed another business idea; building it from merely a concept to a plan of action and fleshed out the details. I finished and posted my last session's gallery on my website (blog entry soon to come), started my very own Google calendar so I can get a little more organized, ran to the grocery store for some much needed items, worked in the garden for a good while, harvesting a couple of zucchini and a bowl full of green beans. I mulched the grape vine and watered everything as well.

I still have a lot on my to do list, but as usual, the more I do, the more motivated I feel so I guess it is all good. Oh yes, and on my small thing list for the house today I filled all of the soap dispensers. I am trying to do at least one small thing each day. Yesterday it was wipe down the bathroom mirrors and medicine cabinets. I figure, unless I figure out a way to make things like that less of a bother, they will never get done. right?

Kiddo has had a little goal of his own for about a week now. I'm not sure where he got this (though I suspect it has something to do with his Happy), but about 5 days ago he got out of bed, came to me and said "Mommy today I am going to be an adult. I am to brush the teeth, and wash the face and comb the hair and change the clothes." And that is exactly what he does now every morning as soon as he gets up.

It is super cute, really. But it's not so cute when I am trying to sleep and he is in my room asking me to turn on the water in the bathroom so he can "brush the teeth". ugh. He can only turn on the faucet in the kitchen by himself and one morning I actually caught him brushing 'the' teeth in there. I had to stop him when he started rinsing his tooth brush in a dirty bowl full of water...

So yeah, super cute, except for when I'm SLEEPING. *sigh* Thanks Happy. ;-)

In Walmart the other day he asked me to buy him a razor because he needed to shave too. When he brushes the teeth and washes the face and combs the hair and changes the clothes - yes, he says it just like that, every time!

In the car last week Kiddo says "My hair is a masterpiece."
Me: It is?
Him: "Yes, but some times I have to get a hair cut."


Port surprised me the other day. We had stopped at Sonic while we were out and I got Kiddo and I a drink. I decided to get another small cup of water as well, in case Port had cup envy. Sure enough, when we got home he started screaming for Kiddo's cup, so I gave him the water. He happily drank it while sitting on the floor and soon enough he pulled the straw out of the top. Once it was out he decided he wanted to drink some more so he got up and brought the cup to me. I told him, "you have to have the straw, Baby, go get it and I will put it back in the cup." And wouldn't you know it, he turned around, walked back over to the rug, picked up the straw and brought it to me?!? I was shocked!

He has also made the connection with wearing shoes and going out side. Now when he wants to go outside he will find his shoes and bring them to me. And if I sit on the floor he will turn his back to me and back up until he can sit in my lap. Then he will stick out his feet for the shoes! Soooooo cute!!! He loves to go outside and swing. I can't wait until he figures out how to get off the porch by himself!

I have been on a roll with cooking lately. I made two amazing dishes this week; a lasagna and a seared salmon with a dill cream sauce. YUM! I am soooo loving this garden!! I swear in my next life I will be a chef. I will share the method/recipe next time. :)

Until,
D :)