Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Wine
It's been a B-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-D couple of days. I think that drinking my favorite wine out of a crazy straw shaped like a bunny will make me feel a lot better. Care to join me?
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Crocheted Slippers
I've tried making a few different kinds of slippers, and these are my favorites. I won't lie, it's because they're the easiest to make. If there's a pattern that I don't have down pat after the first two times I make something, I scrap it. How am I supposed to wiggle the pattern around, change stuff, and make it even cooler if I don't even understand the original pattern, know what I mean?
But anyhoo, I'm sitting here at Shannon's house, and in addition to starting my Harry Potter marathon, I've decided to also crochet (and I brought about 100 other things to do, too...how long did I think I was going to be here exactly? Well, I won't be bored, that's for sure!).
Before she left, Shannon handed me a bag I didn't even realize I had left here. It had a half slipper that I had been working on for the lovely lady who takes care of our furbabies when we go out of town. So, this is what I've been working on for the last hour or so. I love watching my work go from this:
To this: But anyhoo, I'm sitting here at Shannon's house, and in addition to starting my Harry Potter marathon, I've decided to also crochet (and I brought about 100 other things to do, too...how long did I think I was going to be here exactly? Well, I won't be bored, that's for sure!).
Before she left, Shannon handed me a bag I didn't even realize I had left here. It had a half slipper that I had been working on for the lovely lady who takes care of our furbabies when we go out of town. So, this is what I've been working on for the last hour or so. I love watching my work go from this:
It's been a good day. I just have to add ribbon and I'm done.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Harry Potter
Ok, I'm not a HUGE Harry Potter fan (as evidenced by the fact that I've only read one or two of the books...and I don't even remember which ones), but I have always wanted to read the whole series. So FINALLY, with the awesomely wonderful assistance of paperbackswap and bookmooch, I have all seven books! I've started a reading marathon. So far, I've gotten a little over half way through the first book (it's been so long that I've decided to just start over).
And by the way, the picture wasn't chosen at random. That one book has caused me a whole lotta grief. I thought I had all seven books. So I'm packing up for a four day trip (which has become five days), and I want to start on my Harry Potter marathon while I'm gone, right? So, I pack up all my books, and I only have six. Hmmmmmmm...that's uncool. So, I'm rummaging around my house frantically, desperately searching for this missing book, trying to figure out which one it is, and in general trying to keep my head from flying off my shoulders.
Eventually I just came to terms with the fact that I was hallucinating and didn't have all seven books after all. Hopped on paperbackswap really quick, ordered the book, and figured it was no biggie and I could just read the first five books for now, knowing that this one would arrive soon enough.
Still rushing around like a chicken with my head cut off, I ran to the bathroom to grab last minute items, and the book was sitting there. In the freakin' bathroom. Why? I don't know, ask blondie...oh wait, that's right...that's me. (The red is supposed to be a clever cover for my true scatterbrained nature. It's not working. Next time, I'm totally going with purple.)
So, another quick trip to paperbackswap to cancel the book, and I was out the door. Finally.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
"The Rape" of Mr. Smith
"The Rape" of Mr. Smith
By: Anonymous
The law discriminates against rape victims in a manner which would not be tolerated by victims of any other crime. In the following example, a holdup victim is asked questions similar in form to those usually asked a victim of rape.
"Mr. Smith, you were held up at gunpoint on the corner of 16th and Locust?"
"Yes."
"Did you struggle with the robber?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"He was armed."
"Then you made a conscious decision to comply with his demands rather than to resist?"
"Yes."
"Did you scream? Cry out?"
"No. I was afraid."
"I see. Have you ever been held up before?"
"No."
"Have you ever given money away?"
"Yes, of course--"
"And did you do so willingly?"
"What are you getting at?"
"Well, let's put it like this, Mr. Smith. You've given away money in the past--in fact, you have quite a reputation for philanthropy. How can we be sure that you weren't contriving to have your money taken from you by force?"
"Listen, if I wanted--"
"Never mind. What time did this holdup take place, Mr. Smith?"
"About 11 p.m."
"You were out on the streets at 11 p.m.? Doing what?"
"Just walking."
"Just walking? You know it's dangerous being out on the street that late at night. Weren't you aware that you could have been held up?"
"I hadn't thought about it."
"What were you wearing at the time, Mr. Smith?"
"Let's see. A suit. Yes, a suit."
"An expensive suit?"
"Well--yes."
"In other words, Mr. Smith, you were walking around the streets late at night in a suit that practically advertised the fact that you might be a good target for some easy money, isn't that so? I mean, if we didn't know better, Mr. Smith, we might even think you were asking for this to happen, mightn't we?"
"Look, can't we talkin about the past history of the guy who did this to me?"
"I'm afraid not, Mr. Smith. I don't think you would want to violate his rights, now, would you?"
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Weird Al
Then:
And now:
(Embedding has been disabled, so all you get is a link...I'm going to go mumble now.)
(Had to edit to add this.) The TRUE Master of Disguise.
And now:
(Embedding has been disabled, so all you get is a link...I'm going to go mumble now.)
(Had to edit to add this.) The TRUE Master of Disguise.
My Interview With Domestic Witch
This is a copy of my interview over at the Domestic Witch blog.
Five minutes with Joy
Domestic Witch is happy to present an interview with Joy, who woke up with this wacky hair-do on the morning of her interview and knew the day was going to be.....different.
When I was little, my mom taught me. But she was pretty mean about it, and had zero patience. As a result, my crocheting sucked, to say the least, and it was nothing but frustrating for me. I did it for maybe a few months. Then, about 5 years ago, I decided I wanted to pick it up again. I bought a book, some hooks and yarn, and went for it.
So, I guess I just plan to talk about it a lot. I talk to people about it in real life, too, as often as I can. I wrote a letter to the editor of my local newspaper yesterday. I write letters to state legislators and others. I just do whatever I can. I'm lucky to live in one of the few states that does have open records, but the rest of the states need to follow suit, so I'm going to keep working until all states are open.
How do you and your husband balance homekeeping?
I LOOOOVE Easter candy (again, Easter? Ostara? Well, there's a compromise for that one, I've seen Eostra a few times). The malted milk eggs (which weren't as good this year, for some reason) are always a favorite. Cadbury eggs. Yuum! I love corned beef and cabbage, but I've never really associated it with Spring until recently (I don't pay much attention). I'm so looking forward to that recipe!
Five minutes with Joy
Domestic Witch is happy to present an interview with Joy, who woke up with this wacky hair-do on the morning of her interview and knew the day was going to be.....different.What is your most established crock pot recipe?
Oh, I wish I had pictures. This one's yummy. It's from the book Fix It And Forget It Lightly on page 25
Slow-Cooked Chicken & Mushroom Stew (5 weight watcher points per serving)
Makes 4 servings (Ideal slow cooker size: 4-5 qt.)1 can of 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup
half a can of water4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/2 tsp. salt1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 lb. fresh medium-sized white mushrooms, or a variety of mushrooms, cut up1 cup baby carrots
2 ribs celery, cut into small pieces1/2 tsp. garlic powder
Combine soup and water in slow cooker. Cut chicken into 2" chunks. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in slow cooker. Add mushrooms, carrots, celery, and garlic powder. Stir gently to mix. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or until chicken is done and internal temperature reaches 170. Serve with rice.If you like mushrooms, this recipe is TO DIE FOR!
I loved the red and black dramatic afghan you crocheted, who taught you how to crochet?
When I was little, my mom taught me. But she was pretty mean about it, and had zero patience. As a result, my crocheting sucked, to say the least, and it was nothing but frustrating for me. I did it for maybe a few months. Then, about 5 years ago, I decided I wanted to pick it up again. I bought a book, some hooks and yarn, and went for it.
I worked in a residential treatment facility with teenage girls for awhile, and I thought it would be so cool to give them something like that to do. I made mass copies of the book, and handed them out (along with some cheap plastic hooks) to any girl who wanted them. I worked night shift, so I'd sit in the girls' doorways after bedtime helping them learn how to crochet.
Crocheting has absolutely been the most fulfilling activity I've picked up as an adult. :-)
I had not heard of Adoptee Rights before reading your blog, how do you hope to educate others like me in your cause?
I participate in other forums where it's a topic of conversation a lot. I get a lot of information from reading blogs and message boards where adoptees and their first parents (i.e. the preferred term for "birth" parents) talk about adoption from their point of view. Until now, I've stuck to learning, but I think it will be a fairly regular topic of my blog.
One of the forums I belong to, where I'm usually very vocal, there are a lot of new people who come and go, and I have spoken to probably thousands of people that way. Not all people listen...it can be really tough to hear that adoption is not all rainbows and sunshine, and that there are negative aspects, too. It was certainly a shock to me at first, beings that my husband and I were planning to adopt. But it was extremely important to me that I open my mind and make sure that I was doing all I possibly could to be a good parent. Now, my focus is on doing what I can to help my friends.
So, I guess I just plan to talk about it a lot. I talk to people about it in real life, too, as often as I can. I wrote a letter to the editor of my local newspaper yesterday. I write letters to state legislators and others. I just do whatever I can. I'm lucky to live in one of the few states that does have open records, but the rest of the states need to follow suit, so I'm going to keep working until all states are open.
How do you and your husband balance homekeeping?
This is a constant work in progress. We are both notorious procrastinators. I have a confession to make...we still have all our winter holiday decorations out. (I never know what to call Christmas/Yule because it's Christmas to him and Yule to me...maybe Yulemas? HAHA!) Yep, the little fiber-optic tree has fallen down, a lot of the ornaments have fallen on the floor, where the dogs have taken to chewing them up. The base that the tree sits on has fallen on the floor, which I realized yesterday. It's a sad sight. This has never happened before (normally, we just pile stuff up on the couches until you can't tell what all is under there, but we've never left the Yulemas decorations up until March before!).
We were doing pretty good for awhile there, using flylady. But man, this year, we have just dropped the ball. The few things we do have down pat are the "home blessing hour" (which Jason does), laundry (which I do), and paying bills (which we do together, or sometimes I do it if I have more time). Oh, and one person cooks while the other cleans up after. Otherwise...*blush*...we're working on it.
What Spring foods to you traditionally eat?
I LOOOOVE Easter candy (again, Easter? Ostara? Well, there's a compromise for that one, I've seen Eostra a few times). The malted milk eggs (which weren't as good this year, for some reason) are always a favorite. Cadbury eggs. Yuum! I love corned beef and cabbage, but I've never really associated it with Spring until recently (I don't pay much attention). I'm so looking forward to that recipe!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
The Rapist Checklist
Some things to remember...
1. You are a rapist if you get a girl drunk and have sex with her.
2. You are a rapist if you find a drunk girl and have sex with her.
3. You are a rapist if you get yourself drunk too and have sex with her. Your drunkeness is no excuse.
4. If you are BOTH drunk you are still a rapist.
5. If she's alternating between puking her guts out and passing out in the bed then you're a rapist.
6. If she's sleeping and you have sex with her you're a rapist.
7. If she's unconscious and you have sex with her then you're a rapist.
8. If she's taking sleeping pills and doesn’t wake up when you have sex with her then you’re a rapist.
9. If she is incapacitated in any way and unable to say 'Yes' then you're a rapist.
10. If you drug her then you're a rapist.
11. If you find a drugged girl and have sex with her then you're a rapist.
12. If you don't bother to ask her permission and she says neither 'Yes' or 'No' then you're a rapist.
13. You are a rapist if you 'nag' her for sex. Because you manage to ply an eventual 'yes' from a weary victim doesn't mean it's not rape. You are a rapist.
14. You are a rapist if you try to circumvent her "No" by talking her into it. She's not playing hard to get, and, even if she IS it's not YOUR responsibility to 'get' her. You're still a rapist.
15. You are a rapist if you manipulate her into sex when she doesn't otherwise want it. If you say, "If you loved me you’d do X" then you're a rapist. If you say, "All the other kids are doing it!" then you're a rapist.
16. If you threaten her, or act in a way that SHE thinks you're threatening her then you're a rapist. If you puff up and get loud and frustrated while trying to 'talk' her into sex then you're a rapist.
17. You are a rapist if you don't immediately get your hands off of her when she says 'no'. You are a rapist if you take your hands off of her and then put them back ON her after 10 minutes and she eventually 'gives in' to this tactic.
18. You are a rapist if you won't let her sleep peacefully without waking her every 15 minutes asking her for sex. Sleep deprivation is a form of torture and YOU are a rapist.
19. If you're necking with her and you're naked and you've already gone down on her and she says 'No' to sex with you and you have sex with her anyway then you're a rapist.
20. If you're engaged in intercourse and she says 'No' at ANY point and you don't immediately stop then you're a rapist.
21. If she said "Yes" to sex with a condom and that condom breaks and you proceed anyway then you're a rapist.
22. If she picked you up at a bar looking for sex and then decides that she doesn't WANT sex and you continue then you're a rapist.
23. If she changes her mind at ANY point for ANY reason and you don't immediately back off or you try to talk her into it and get sex anyway then you're a rapist.
24. If you don't hit her and she says 'No' you're still a rapist.
25. If you don't have a knife or a gun or a garrote and she says 'No' then you're still a rapist.
26. If you're a friend of hers you can still be a rapist.
27. If you had sex with her the night before but she doesn't want morning sex and you pressure her for it anyway then you're a rapist.
28. If you're her husband you can still be a rapist.
29. If it's your wedding night and she doesn't WANT to have sex with you and you force or coerce her anyway then you're a rapist.
30. If she's had sex with you hundreds of times before but doesn't want to on the 101st time then you're a rapist.
31. If you penetrate her anally, orally or digitally against her will then YOU my friend, are ALSO a rapist.
32. Women do not owe you sex.
33. Buying her dinner does not entitle you to sex.
34. Paying her mortgage does not entitle you to sex.
35. Buying her clothing does not entitle you to sex.
36. Buying her lingerie does not entitle you to sex. It also doesn't mean that she has any obligation to wear that lingerie around you.
37. Spending any amount of money on her does not, ever, entitle you to sex.
38. Seeing her legs or cleavage does not entitle you to sex.
39. If she 'turns you on' you're not entitled to sex.
40. If she has ****ed every man in a 10 square mile radius and she doesn't want to **** you and you have sex with her anyway, then you're a rapist.
41. Her clothing is not a reason for you to rape her. Her LACK of clothing is no reason to rape her. If she's wearing a thong and pasties you STILL have no right to rape her.
42. If she's a prostitute and she says "No" then you're a rapist.
43. If she's a stripper and she says "No" then you're a rapist. Likewise, if she's a stripper and she's been rubbing against your &!#@ all night long and you follow her to her car and have sex with her against her will then you are ALSO a rapist.
44. If you watch a woman being raped without calling the authorities then you're as bad as a rapist and you may also be a rapist yourself.
45. If you don't fight rape then you accept rape. (This does not apply to a woman BEING raped...sometimes fighting back is dangerous, impossible, or frightening.)
46. If you don't believe a woman when she says she was raped then you're encouraging rape.
47. If you choose to remain friends with a man who raped a woman you are encouraging rape.
48. If you confess to the authorities that you raped a woman it does not exonerate you. You are not suddenly a model of good behavior.
49. If you ‘only’ raped one woman, you’re STILL a rapist.
50. You cannot tell who is a rapist by the way they look. Rapists are your friends, your brothers, your fathers and you won't know it.
51. Do not get frustrated with a woman if she doesn't trust you. SHE already knows that rapists don't wear signs on their foreheads. Something you think is innocuous SHE may find terrifying.
1. You are a rapist if you get a girl drunk and have sex with her.
2. You are a rapist if you find a drunk girl and have sex with her.
3. You are a rapist if you get yourself drunk too and have sex with her. Your drunkeness is no excuse.
4. If you are BOTH drunk you are still a rapist.
5. If she's alternating between puking her guts out and passing out in the bed then you're a rapist.
6. If she's sleeping and you have sex with her you're a rapist.
7. If she's unconscious and you have sex with her then you're a rapist.
8. If she's taking sleeping pills and doesn’t wake up when you have sex with her then you’re a rapist.
9. If she is incapacitated in any way and unable to say 'Yes' then you're a rapist.
10. If you drug her then you're a rapist.
11. If you find a drugged girl and have sex with her then you're a rapist.
12. If you don't bother to ask her permission and she says neither 'Yes' or 'No' then you're a rapist.
13. You are a rapist if you 'nag' her for sex. Because you manage to ply an eventual 'yes' from a weary victim doesn't mean it's not rape. You are a rapist.
14. You are a rapist if you try to circumvent her "No" by talking her into it. She's not playing hard to get, and, even if she IS it's not YOUR responsibility to 'get' her. You're still a rapist.
15. You are a rapist if you manipulate her into sex when she doesn't otherwise want it. If you say, "If you loved me you’d do X" then you're a rapist. If you say, "All the other kids are doing it!" then you're a rapist.
16. If you threaten her, or act in a way that SHE thinks you're threatening her then you're a rapist. If you puff up and get loud and frustrated while trying to 'talk' her into sex then you're a rapist.
17. You are a rapist if you don't immediately get your hands off of her when she says 'no'. You are a rapist if you take your hands off of her and then put them back ON her after 10 minutes and she eventually 'gives in' to this tactic.
18. You are a rapist if you won't let her sleep peacefully without waking her every 15 minutes asking her for sex. Sleep deprivation is a form of torture and YOU are a rapist.
19. If you're necking with her and you're naked and you've already gone down on her and she says 'No' to sex with you and you have sex with her anyway then you're a rapist.
20. If you're engaged in intercourse and she says 'No' at ANY point and you don't immediately stop then you're a rapist.
21. If she said "Yes" to sex with a condom and that condom breaks and you proceed anyway then you're a rapist.
22. If she picked you up at a bar looking for sex and then decides that she doesn't WANT sex and you continue then you're a rapist.
23. If she changes her mind at ANY point for ANY reason and you don't immediately back off or you try to talk her into it and get sex anyway then you're a rapist.
24. If you don't hit her and she says 'No' you're still a rapist.
25. If you don't have a knife or a gun or a garrote and she says 'No' then you're still a rapist.
26. If you're a friend of hers you can still be a rapist.
27. If you had sex with her the night before but she doesn't want morning sex and you pressure her for it anyway then you're a rapist.
28. If you're her husband you can still be a rapist.
29. If it's your wedding night and she doesn't WANT to have sex with you and you force or coerce her anyway then you're a rapist.
30. If she's had sex with you hundreds of times before but doesn't want to on the 101st time then you're a rapist.
31. If you penetrate her anally, orally or digitally against her will then YOU my friend, are ALSO a rapist.
32. Women do not owe you sex.
33. Buying her dinner does not entitle you to sex.
34. Paying her mortgage does not entitle you to sex.
35. Buying her clothing does not entitle you to sex.
36. Buying her lingerie does not entitle you to sex. It also doesn't mean that she has any obligation to wear that lingerie around you.
37. Spending any amount of money on her does not, ever, entitle you to sex.
38. Seeing her legs or cleavage does not entitle you to sex.
39. If she 'turns you on' you're not entitled to sex.
40. If she has ****ed every man in a 10 square mile radius and she doesn't want to **** you and you have sex with her anyway, then you're a rapist.
41. Her clothing is not a reason for you to rape her. Her LACK of clothing is no reason to rape her. If she's wearing a thong and pasties you STILL have no right to rape her.
42. If she's a prostitute and she says "No" then you're a rapist.
43. If she's a stripper and she says "No" then you're a rapist. Likewise, if she's a stripper and she's been rubbing against your &!#@ all night long and you follow her to her car and have sex with her against her will then you are ALSO a rapist.
44. If you watch a woman being raped without calling the authorities then you're as bad as a rapist and you may also be a rapist yourself.
45. If you don't fight rape then you accept rape. (This does not apply to a woman BEING raped...sometimes fighting back is dangerous, impossible, or frightening.)
46. If you don't believe a woman when she says she was raped then you're encouraging rape.
47. If you choose to remain friends with a man who raped a woman you are encouraging rape.
48. If you confess to the authorities that you raped a woman it does not exonerate you. You are not suddenly a model of good behavior.
49. If you ‘only’ raped one woman, you’re STILL a rapist.
50. You cannot tell who is a rapist by the way they look. Rapists are your friends, your brothers, your fathers and you won't know it.
51. Do not get frustrated with a woman if she doesn't trust you. SHE already knows that rapists don't wear signs on their foreheads. Something you think is innocuous SHE may find terrifying.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Menu Planning
I've mentioned Flylady a few times, I think. I'm sure I'll write a post eventually dedicated only to Flylady stuff, but this one is specifically about one part of my life that has changed as a direct result of becoming a Flybaby. I used to just write a general grocery list of the basics, not worrying about what I was going to make. I figured I had most of the ingredients to make a few good meals, and it usually worked out pretty well. Unfortunately, we'd end up running to the store quite often because we were still missing one or two ingredients. So, starting to plan my meals ahead of time has been awesome.
I actually started doing this after I saw Leanne Ely's Saving Dinner sample menu's, and realizing that would help me tremendously. I have a couple of menu's written up and saved in my documents, but it proved to be too much work to keep making those great big ol' lists over and over again, and I never wanted the same one twice (especially since I'm always experimenting with something, and if I try to add an experimental meal to the list and it turns out disgusting, I have to find something to replace it with...and it's just more trouble than it's worth).
So, I came up with a system half way in between the big, elaborate meal plan and the fly by the seat of my pants (and make a few extra runs to the grocery store in between shopping trips) systems. I'm going to walk you through my little system, just in case it helps. Actually, I'm going to walk you through what I did last time, since it changes a little every time, and I liked the most recent grocery shopping trip so much.
The first thing I did was peek around in the cupboards to see what we already have that could make meals we both like. For example, we have tons of leftover tuna and cream of mushroom soup, along with a few bags of pasta. Viola, quick and easy tuna casserole. We have plenty of kidney beans and some cornmeal. So, chili and cornbread would be a great meal to have. I went through like this, adding the name of each meal until I had 30 meals (but as I mentioned in my earlier post, I usually only do 14 meals).
For each meal, I then write down how much of each ingredient we need. It looks like this:
Most of the meals are pretty self explanatory (for instance, we bought those taco meal kits that have everything in them except meat and produce, so I didn't break those out into ingredients). I usually only write down the ones where I'm changing the menu to conserve (like, corn chowder usually uses 2 cans of cream of potato soup and 2 cans of evaporated milk, but I figured we could cut it in half and have sandwiches with it this time). I wouldn't do this if I were the only one cooking, but if Jason decides to cook (like he did tonight...well, I kinda decided for him, but he could have said no), he needs to know what ingredients I planned for him to use. Sometimes he'll grab twice as much of an ingredient than he needs, and we don't have enough for another meal.
Anyway, I don't necessarily write down every ingredient for every meal, but I at least mentally make this list for each meal. While I'm doing this, I make my grocery list (I'd been working on it the whole time, actually, but this is the step where I double and triple check that I have everything on the list). Then I check my master grocery list (another flylady suggestion), and I'm done.
Before dinner that night, I make sure the list of ingredients, and a complete list of all the meals I have planned for that [month, bi-week, or week] are on the fridge. I'm pretty new still to the coupon thing, but so far, this is the part where I grab coupons, and I'll add any good coupons to my grocery list, and grab any coupons I think might come in handy while I'm out. Then I'm off to the store!
I actually started doing this after I saw Leanne Ely's Saving Dinner sample menu's, and realizing that would help me tremendously. I have a couple of menu's written up and saved in my documents, but it proved to be too much work to keep making those great big ol' lists over and over again, and I never wanted the same one twice (especially since I'm always experimenting with something, and if I try to add an experimental meal to the list and it turns out disgusting, I have to find something to replace it with...and it's just more trouble than it's worth).
So, I came up with a system half way in between the big, elaborate meal plan and the fly by the seat of my pants (and make a few extra runs to the grocery store in between shopping trips) systems. I'm going to walk you through my little system, just in case it helps. Actually, I'm going to walk you through what I did last time, since it changes a little every time, and I liked the most recent grocery shopping trip so much.
The first thing I did was peek around in the cupboards to see what we already have that could make meals we both like. For example, we have tons of leftover tuna and cream of mushroom soup, along with a few bags of pasta. Viola, quick and easy tuna casserole. We have plenty of kidney beans and some cornmeal. So, chili and cornbread would be a great meal to have. I went through like this, adding the name of each meal until I had 30 meals (but as I mentioned in my earlier post, I usually only do 14 meals).
For each meal, I then write down how much of each ingredient we need. It looks like this:
Most of the meals are pretty self explanatory (for instance, we bought those taco meal kits that have everything in them except meat and produce, so I didn't break those out into ingredients). I usually only write down the ones where I'm changing the menu to conserve (like, corn chowder usually uses 2 cans of cream of potato soup and 2 cans of evaporated milk, but I figured we could cut it in half and have sandwiches with it this time). I wouldn't do this if I were the only one cooking, but if Jason decides to cook (like he did tonight...well, I kinda decided for him, but he could have said no), he needs to know what ingredients I planned for him to use. Sometimes he'll grab twice as much of an ingredient than he needs, and we don't have enough for another meal.Anyway, I don't necessarily write down every ingredient for every meal, but I at least mentally make this list for each meal. While I'm doing this, I make my grocery list (I'd been working on it the whole time, actually, but this is the step where I double and triple check that I have everything on the list). Then I check my master grocery list (another flylady suggestion), and I'm done.
Before dinner that night, I make sure the list of ingredients, and a complete list of all the meals I have planned for that [month, bi-week, or week] are on the fridge. I'm pretty new still to the coupon thing, but so far, this is the part where I grab coupons, and I'll add any good coupons to my grocery list, and grab any coupons I think might come in handy while I'm out. Then I'm off to the store!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
New Goals (Budget)
I started using coupons way back when I was 19-ish, during my first marriage. I still remember the incredible rush when I saved over $150 on ONE grocery shopping trip! Due to the economy, having my hours cut back at work, and lots of other financial things all coming up at the same time, I decided to pick this old habit back up. I was hesitant to make goals like I've seen some others doing with their couponing and budgeting, because I was afraid that if I didn't meet my goals, I'd start feeling bad about myself (which happens easily for me, so I'm trying to learn to avoid my self-imposed feel-bad traps). But today, I made a grocery list and was SHOCKED!!!
I planned for 30 dinners (normally I only plan for 14, but wanted to see what I could get away with), along with breakfasts, lunches, and desserts (I made fudge the other day and was upset with myself for not sharing it on my blog...it's super easy! So, I'm going to buy the ingredients, make it again, and share it with y'all. Are you excited??? I am!!!). You might be shocked to find that after that many meals, this is my entire shopping list:
coffee creamer
coffee (anybody know any good deals on decaf?)
dog food
yeast (brewer's...love it on toast)
rubbing alcohol (gotta try this deodorant)
tums
spring rolls (which I have coupons for)
corn
mouthwash
chow mien noodles
bean sprouts
diced tomatoes
1 bag chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
canned fruit
binder (for my flylady control journal...I'll have to post about that)
butter
frozen veggies
flour
vital wheat gluten
and IF I can find a good deal:
paper towels
toilet paper
cheese
That's it. For the entire month!!! Are you as psyched about that as I am? Ok maybe not, but I am PSYCHED, y'all! So, with my teeny weeny little grocery list as inspiration, I've decided to set myself a budget. I'm going to allow myself a maximum of $200 today. So, whatever I spend at Winco (the cheapest store), I'll subtract that from $200, and the rest I will use to get good deals at other stores and stock up. I'm going to bring some coupons with me that I think might come in handy, and we'll see what happens! I'll update this blog post when I'm done with my shopping today.
ETA: Oh, it was a joyous evening (no pun intended). First, I stopped at the shell station and put $25 in my car on a gift card I got for free from mypoints (if you would like to join mypoints, please leave me a comment with your name and email address, because I get extra points for referrals!). So, I got almost a full tank of gas for free. Then, I went to Winco (they're accepting internet coupons now! Yippee!) and spent $82.77 (saving $3.05...not great, but I didn't have coupons for hardly anything that I needed). Then, I went to Albertson's because they were having a sale on cheese (2 lbs. for $3.99), and bought 4 blocks of cheese, bringing my total for today up to $104.73 (I just now realized that they didn't give me the sale price on the last block of cheese, dangit! I'll have to make a run down to the store...might hit Fred's while I'm out). Anyway, so that leaves me with about half my budget to hit the sales for the week! Woohooo!
ETA2: Okey dokey, I just got back from Albertson's about the cheese, and I stopped in at Fred Meyer (and I'm glad I did!). When I went into Albertson's, the issue was that there was a limit of two. BUT, since the machine did give me the third block of cheese at sale price, he went ahead and gave me the fourth one at the sale price, too! So, I walked away with $6 in my pocket.
I went straight over to Fred Meyer intending to buy some of their MD bath tissue which is on sale for $4.99 (I had to hunt down the coupon, though). I peeked around at some of the other products I had coupons for and ended up spending a bit of money, but it was worth it. They had a deal where if you spend $25 on participating items, you'll get $10 off your next shopping trip. Well, the only participating item I'd use was tums, so I bought $25 worth of tums, lol! Then, I found that almost everything I had coupons for was on sale! I bought two dry idea roll ons for 2 for $5, and then used 2 coupons for $2 each, getting the dry idea for 50 cents each!
After this trip, my total for the day is $148.53. But I have $6 cash (which I forgot to apply toward my Fred Meyer purchase), and $10 off my next Fred's trip. So I'm pretty happy with that!
Tomorrow: Walgreens.
I planned for 30 dinners (normally I only plan for 14, but wanted to see what I could get away with), along with breakfasts, lunches, and desserts (I made fudge the other day and was upset with myself for not sharing it on my blog...it's super easy! So, I'm going to buy the ingredients, make it again, and share it with y'all. Are you excited??? I am!!!). You might be shocked to find that after that many meals, this is my entire shopping list:
coffee creamer
coffee (anybody know any good deals on decaf?)
dog food
yeast (brewer's...love it on toast)
rubbing alcohol (gotta try this deodorant)
tums
spring rolls (which I have coupons for)
corn
mouthwash
chow mien noodles
bean sprouts
diced tomatoes
1 bag chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
canned fruit
binder (for my flylady control journal...I'll have to post about that)
butter
frozen veggies
flour
vital wheat gluten
and IF I can find a good deal:
paper towels
toilet paper
cheese
That's it. For the entire month!!! Are you as psyched about that as I am? Ok maybe not, but I am PSYCHED, y'all! So, with my teeny weeny little grocery list as inspiration, I've decided to set myself a budget. I'm going to allow myself a maximum of $200 today. So, whatever I spend at Winco (the cheapest store), I'll subtract that from $200, and the rest I will use to get good deals at other stores and stock up. I'm going to bring some coupons with me that I think might come in handy, and we'll see what happens! I'll update this blog post when I'm done with my shopping today.
ETA: Oh, it was a joyous evening (no pun intended). First, I stopped at the shell station and put $25 in my car on a gift card I got for free from mypoints (if you would like to join mypoints, please leave me a comment with your name and email address, because I get extra points for referrals!). So, I got almost a full tank of gas for free. Then, I went to Winco (they're accepting internet coupons now! Yippee!) and spent $82.77 (saving $3.05...not great, but I didn't have coupons for hardly anything that I needed). Then, I went to Albertson's because they were having a sale on cheese (2 lbs. for $3.99), and bought 4 blocks of cheese, bringing my total for today up to $104.73 (I just now realized that they didn't give me the sale price on the last block of cheese, dangit! I'll have to make a run down to the store...might hit Fred's while I'm out). Anyway, so that leaves me with about half my budget to hit the sales for the week! Woohooo!
ETA2: Okey dokey, I just got back from Albertson's about the cheese, and I stopped in at Fred Meyer (and I'm glad I did!). When I went into Albertson's, the issue was that there was a limit of two. BUT, since the machine did give me the third block of cheese at sale price, he went ahead and gave me the fourth one at the sale price, too! So, I walked away with $6 in my pocket.
I went straight over to Fred Meyer intending to buy some of their MD bath tissue which is on sale for $4.99 (I had to hunt down the coupon, though). I peeked around at some of the other products I had coupons for and ended up spending a bit of money, but it was worth it. They had a deal where if you spend $25 on participating items, you'll get $10 off your next shopping trip. Well, the only participating item I'd use was tums, so I bought $25 worth of tums, lol! Then, I found that almost everything I had coupons for was on sale! I bought two dry idea roll ons for 2 for $5, and then used 2 coupons for $2 each, getting the dry idea for 50 cents each!
After this trip, my total for the day is $148.53. But I have $6 cash (which I forgot to apply toward my Fred Meyer purchase), and $10 off my next Fred's trip. So I'm pretty happy with that!
Tomorrow: Walgreens.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Being An Unperson
This is such an important message, delivered so well. I think that we can all relate to at least one sentence from this video...and if we can relate to one line, we can imagine relating to the rest of it, too. I have been an unperson. I have loved unpersons. I want this message to be heard and understood by every person on this planet, as it relates to every other person on this planet. We are all worthy of being real.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Homemade Envelopes
A friend of mine sent me a letter enclosed in the most gorgeous envelope the other day. I opened it up to find that it was actually a page from a calendar! Ok, I confess I've heard of this before, and I'm sure it's not a brand spankin' new thought or anything, but I've never done it, and I thought it was the coolest thing on the planet at that moment. So, I asked my friend how to do it, and I thought I'd share here with you.
Warning: I'm a tad obsessed with sunflowers.
Without further ado...so, you take a regular envelope and steam it to release the glue (it took me awhile to figure out how to do this. I actually ended up leaving the envelope on top of my cup of tea while it was steeping, resulting in an oil spot on the envelope from the essential oils in the tea...but whatever, it worked, right?
Then you pick out your subject (i.e. calendar page, scrapbook paper, picture, or whatever). I taped the envelope on, although I'd like to make a sturdier pattern out of a cereal box or something so that I can start just tracing on the paper. But this works for now:
Then, you just cut it out:
I realized after doing a few of them that it's much easier later on if you fold the two end pieces at this point, before you're finished cutting.
Then when you're done, you fold in the two side pieces, and make a really good crease:
Fold up the bottom and tape it up:
Fold down the flap, and viola, you've got some way cool envelopes!
I almost forgot to mention one of the coolest parts of making your own envelope out of calendar pages! You have the inspirational quotes leftover for scrapbooking!
Warning: I'm a tad obsessed with sunflowers.
Without further ado...so, you take a regular envelope and steam it to release the glue (it took me awhile to figure out how to do this. I actually ended up leaving the envelope on top of my cup of tea while it was steeping, resulting in an oil spot on the envelope from the essential oils in the tea...but whatever, it worked, right?
Then you pick out your subject (i.e. calendar page, scrapbook paper, picture, or whatever). I taped the envelope on, although I'd like to make a sturdier pattern out of a cereal box or something so that I can start just tracing on the paper. But this works for now:
Then, you just cut it out:
I realized after doing a few of them that it's much easier later on if you fold the two end pieces at this point, before you're finished cutting.
Then when you're done, you fold in the two side pieces, and make a really good crease:
Fold up the bottom and tape it up:
Fold down the flap, and viola, you've got some way cool envelopes!
I almost forgot to mention one of the coolest parts of making your own envelope out of calendar pages! You have the inspirational quotes leftover for scrapbooking!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Interview With Jason
I don't know why, but my husband decided he wanted me to interview him, too. Heehee. He doesn't have a blog for me to link you to, but that's all right. (Jason, a quick apology...they don't have your font. I'm sorry.) Without further ado:
1. Where do you want to be five years from now?
In 5 years, I want to be with my wife, possibly some potential slaves...umm, I mean kids running around, content with all aspects of my life.
2. What is your favorite piece of clothing, and why?
My past favorite piece of clothing is this bright yellow shirt that I would wear to my Duck football games...a kid at my work, right after bouncing a battery off of my head, decided to grab the neck of it and rip it so bad that I had to have it stapled so that I could go home that night without the threat of being arrested for indecent exposure. My current favorite is the shirt I am wearing now...a green, long-sleeved Big Dogs shirt. It is my favorite because, well, it's green, and it is very comfy.
3. What is your favorite childhood memory, and why?
Playing football with my brothers in the front yard, the Christmas where every single member of my family had the flu at the same time (trust me, it was a cool memory), and swimming in our swimming hole every summer! Those were fun times...trust me, really!
4. Tell me about your favorite book.
My favorite book right now is probably "Napalm and Silly Putty" by George Carlin. Hilarious!
5. What is your favorite web site and why?
Oh, wow....where to begin...espn.com, the Oregon Ducks Scout message boards, bungie.net (Halo 3 website), myspace, beastlove.com....ummm...did I type that out loud? Oh, and Joy's blog is pretty damn cool, too!
1. Where do you want to be five years from now?
In 5 years, I want to be with my wife, possibly some potential slaves...umm, I mean kids running around, content with all aspects of my life.
2. What is your favorite piece of clothing, and why?
My past favorite piece of clothing is this bright yellow shirt that I would wear to my Duck football games...a kid at my work, right after bouncing a battery off of my head, decided to grab the neck of it and rip it so bad that I had to have it stapled so that I could go home that night without the threat of being arrested for indecent exposure. My current favorite is the shirt I am wearing now...a green, long-sleeved Big Dogs shirt. It is my favorite because, well, it's green, and it is very comfy.
3. What is your favorite childhood memory, and why?
Playing football with my brothers in the front yard, the Christmas where every single member of my family had the flu at the same time (trust me, it was a cool memory), and swimming in our swimming hole every summer! Those were fun times...trust me, really!
4. Tell me about your favorite book.
My favorite book right now is probably "Napalm and Silly Putty" by George Carlin. Hilarious!
5. What is your favorite web site and why?
Oh, wow....where to begin...espn.com, the Oregon Ducks Scout message boards, bungie.net (Halo 3 website), myspace, beastlove.com....ummm...did I type that out loud? Oh, and Joy's blog is pretty damn cool, too!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Onion and Pumpkin and Syrup, Oh My!
I had a fun day today, so I thought I'd share.
I have had this plantar wart on the bottom of my left foot for years. I've bought the over the counter crap. Doesn't work. It shrinks the wart, makes it ugly, makes it easy to slough off the top few layers...but it also creates a thick layer of skin that gets used to the chemicals, and forms a thick, protective barrier over the root of the wart. Great!
I went to the doctor in November to have it frozen off. The first appointment hurt like heck because they had to rip the skin off the top (that thick, protective layer of skin), and freeze the root of the wart with nitrogen. AND IT DIDN'T EVEN WORK! Stupid doctors. (No offense to any doctors that read this post...I've learned that there are things to go to the doctor for, and things to call my friends for...this is one thing I'm not ever going to waste money on doctors for again.) They told me I'd have to just keep coming in every couple weeks (at $25 a pop) until it was gone. I went back in one more time, but my insurance got messed up after the new year and I couldn't go back.
Not only did that damn wart grow to ridiculous proportions in the 2 month span since the last time I went in, it also SPAWNED! I ended up with about 20 little baby warts hanging around the Big Mama.
I have a friend who is an herbalist (*waves to Tamara!*). Quite some time ago, she told me about this gentle, Earth-friendly remedy for warts. I never tried it. I have to be honest...I'm lazy. I put that harsh chemical crap on my foot once a day for years...it was easy. I was getting into bed, and I'd just smear it on, and hop into bed. It provided a handy excuse for not getting out of bed when I forgot something...resulting in many, many trips to the bathroom, living room, and kitchen for Jason after he was all snuggled in for the night. *blush**bat eyelashes*
Now, it's not that this Earth-friendly remedy was really all that difficult or time consuming. I just couldn't figure out how to work it in. Let me explain. (It's so super simple, I can't even believe I put it off this long).
You take 2-3 onions and 2-3 lemons. Cut the onion in half, and remove just enough of the center of the onion to make a bowl (make sure the bottom is intact so it doesn't leak). Then, take a lemon, cut it in half, and squeeze the juice into the center of the onion. Put the onion on some tin foil in a muffin pan (just to keep it upright). Gather the tin foil over the top to seal in the juice. Cook on 350 for a couple hours until the onion is translucent. This is what comes out of the oven:
You just take a qtip and rub the juice on your wart whenever you think about it. Repeat every day until your onions and lemons are used up. Oh, and drink some anti-viral tea a couple times a day while you're doing this treatment (which reminds me, I'm going to go make myself a cup of licorice tea right now before I finish). Tamara says that for about 2 weeks after the treatment, you'll wonder if it worked...and then the wart will just slowly disappear. I'll let you know how it works out (I'm on day 4...I think...).
The thing I worried about (silly in retrospect) was how to do my job, and how to deal with other daily obligations if I'm supposed to be hanging around smearing stuff on my foot all day. I'd have to not wear socks or shoes, and I'd have to transport this smelly onion to work and back every day. I never have a four day weekend (and this wart has gotten so out of hand that I need a six day treatment, so I most certainly never get THAT many days off in a row). But it's easy actually. First of all, my hours were cut back at work, so I only work 3 days a week, and two of my work days are fairly short. I decided to skip the two short days (just using the onion while I'm home), and for just one day (Thursday), I'll bring it to work. It's staff meeting day anyway...nobody is going to smell it, except maybe one student. No sweat! And if I wear my crocs, I'll be able to slip my shoe on quickly if needed. Why did I put this off again?
Ok, now to something a bit yummier. I made pumpkin bread today! Now, I mentioned a long time ago that I like to make jars of stuff to give people ever year. The pumpkin bread was from one of those jars. I love the leftovers as much as I love the gifts! They always come in handy, and give me lots of new recipes to use. Sometimes, I'll make up extra jars during the year so that I'll have quick, easy recipes on hand. Here's a picture of the first jars I ever put together:
This one was green and yellow split pea soup. Super easy, super cheap, and makes a HUGE pot of soup. Anyway, I've had these jars of pumpkin bread in the cupboard for awhile, and the only time I ever make it is around Harvest time, if I'm asigned cakes and ale for a ritual...which...well...hasn't happened in a long while, beings that I'm very super duper extra solitary right now. Which means, I haven't made pumpkin bread in ages. I've had the jar sitting on the counter for a week, so I FINALLY went for it today! Here's the recipe:
Quick Pumpkin Bread
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. packed light brown sugar
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. chopped pecans or walnuts
1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1. Layer ingredients attractively in any order in 1-quart food storage jar with tight-fitting lid. Pack ingredients down slightly before adding another layer.
2. If gifting (or if desired), cover top of jar with fabric, attach recipe tag with raffia or ribbon.
Recipe Tag:
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 c. canned pumpkin (I save and freeze my leftover Samhain pumpkin ever year, just for this recipe)
1 jar Quick Pumpkin Bread Mix
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray (I didn't have any...used olive oil, worked fine).
2. Beat butter in large bowl with electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin until well blended. Add contents of jar; stir just until blended. Pour into prepared pan.
3. Bake 50-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean (mine took 65 minutes, but I had too much liquid in my bread...it came out fine, though). Cool in pan on wire rack 15 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on wire rack. Makes 1 loaf.
And here is the finished product:
Aaaaaand, last but not least (and not the least of what I did today), I made vanilla syrup! My mother in law gave me these bottles of syrup that I've been using in my coffee. I knew that once they were gone, I was going to miss them terribly. My coffee has been so yummy lately! So, I looked up how to make syrup. I'm not a big sugar fan, though, so we have no sugar in our house. I wondered if I could make it with splenda? I have heard bad things about splenda, but we have tons of it, so why not use it up, eh? So, I made the syrup just like I would with sugar...twice as much splenda as water, in a pan. The splenda completely dissolved in the water without even heating it. But it seemed rather thin, and had a funky after taste. So I decided to try adding some vegetable glycerine, which is very sweet. It didn't make it any thicker, but it helped with the after taste. I used my homemade vanilla extract (2 tsp), boiled the syrup for a couple minutes to burn off the alcohol, and it is FABULOUS! Sooo much better than the storebought stuff! Here's the finished product:
Cheap, easy, SUPER yummy, and easy to store in the bottles I already had. I like that. :-)
Have a great day, all!
I have had this plantar wart on the bottom of my left foot for years. I've bought the over the counter crap. Doesn't work. It shrinks the wart, makes it ugly, makes it easy to slough off the top few layers...but it also creates a thick layer of skin that gets used to the chemicals, and forms a thick, protective barrier over the root of the wart. Great!
I went to the doctor in November to have it frozen off. The first appointment hurt like heck because they had to rip the skin off the top (that thick, protective layer of skin), and freeze the root of the wart with nitrogen. AND IT DIDN'T EVEN WORK! Stupid doctors. (No offense to any doctors that read this post...I've learned that there are things to go to the doctor for, and things to call my friends for...this is one thing I'm not ever going to waste money on doctors for again.) They told me I'd have to just keep coming in every couple weeks (at $25 a pop) until it was gone. I went back in one more time, but my insurance got messed up after the new year and I couldn't go back.
Not only did that damn wart grow to ridiculous proportions in the 2 month span since the last time I went in, it also SPAWNED! I ended up with about 20 little baby warts hanging around the Big Mama.
I have a friend who is an herbalist (*waves to Tamara!*). Quite some time ago, she told me about this gentle, Earth-friendly remedy for warts. I never tried it. I have to be honest...I'm lazy. I put that harsh chemical crap on my foot once a day for years...it was easy. I was getting into bed, and I'd just smear it on, and hop into bed. It provided a handy excuse for not getting out of bed when I forgot something...resulting in many, many trips to the bathroom, living room, and kitchen for Jason after he was all snuggled in for the night. *blush**bat eyelashes*
Now, it's not that this Earth-friendly remedy was really all that difficult or time consuming. I just couldn't figure out how to work it in. Let me explain. (It's so super simple, I can't even believe I put it off this long).
You take 2-3 onions and 2-3 lemons. Cut the onion in half, and remove just enough of the center of the onion to make a bowl (make sure the bottom is intact so it doesn't leak). Then, take a lemon, cut it in half, and squeeze the juice into the center of the onion. Put the onion on some tin foil in a muffin pan (just to keep it upright). Gather the tin foil over the top to seal in the juice. Cook on 350 for a couple hours until the onion is translucent. This is what comes out of the oven:
You just take a qtip and rub the juice on your wart whenever you think about it. Repeat every day until your onions and lemons are used up. Oh, and drink some anti-viral tea a couple times a day while you're doing this treatment (which reminds me, I'm going to go make myself a cup of licorice tea right now before I finish). Tamara says that for about 2 weeks after the treatment, you'll wonder if it worked...and then the wart will just slowly disappear. I'll let you know how it works out (I'm on day 4...I think...). The thing I worried about (silly in retrospect) was how to do my job, and how to deal with other daily obligations if I'm supposed to be hanging around smearing stuff on my foot all day. I'd have to not wear socks or shoes, and I'd have to transport this smelly onion to work and back every day. I never have a four day weekend (and this wart has gotten so out of hand that I need a six day treatment, so I most certainly never get THAT many days off in a row). But it's easy actually. First of all, my hours were cut back at work, so I only work 3 days a week, and two of my work days are fairly short. I decided to skip the two short days (just using the onion while I'm home), and for just one day (Thursday), I'll bring it to work. It's staff meeting day anyway...nobody is going to smell it, except maybe one student. No sweat! And if I wear my crocs, I'll be able to slip my shoe on quickly if needed. Why did I put this off again?
Ok, now to something a bit yummier. I made pumpkin bread today! Now, I mentioned a long time ago that I like to make jars of stuff to give people ever year. The pumpkin bread was from one of those jars. I love the leftovers as much as I love the gifts! They always come in handy, and give me lots of new recipes to use. Sometimes, I'll make up extra jars during the year so that I'll have quick, easy recipes on hand. Here's a picture of the first jars I ever put together:
This one was green and yellow split pea soup. Super easy, super cheap, and makes a HUGE pot of soup. Anyway, I've had these jars of pumpkin bread in the cupboard for awhile, and the only time I ever make it is around Harvest time, if I'm asigned cakes and ale for a ritual...which...well...hasn't happened in a long while, beings that I'm very super duper extra solitary right now. Which means, I haven't made pumpkin bread in ages. I've had the jar sitting on the counter for a week, so I FINALLY went for it today! Here's the recipe:Quick Pumpkin Bread
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. packed light brown sugar
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. chopped pecans or walnuts
1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1. Layer ingredients attractively in any order in 1-quart food storage jar with tight-fitting lid. Pack ingredients down slightly before adding another layer.
2. If gifting (or if desired), cover top of jar with fabric, attach recipe tag with raffia or ribbon.
Recipe Tag:
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 c. canned pumpkin (I save and freeze my leftover Samhain pumpkin ever year, just for this recipe)
1 jar Quick Pumpkin Bread Mix
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray (I didn't have any...used olive oil, worked fine).
2. Beat butter in large bowl with electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin until well blended. Add contents of jar; stir just until blended. Pour into prepared pan.
3. Bake 50-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean (mine took 65 minutes, but I had too much liquid in my bread...it came out fine, though). Cool in pan on wire rack 15 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on wire rack. Makes 1 loaf.
And here is the finished product:
Aaaaaand, last but not least (and not the least of what I did today), I made vanilla syrup! My mother in law gave me these bottles of syrup that I've been using in my coffee. I knew that once they were gone, I was going to miss them terribly. My coffee has been so yummy lately! So, I looked up how to make syrup. I'm not a big sugar fan, though, so we have no sugar in our house. I wondered if I could make it with splenda? I have heard bad things about splenda, but we have tons of it, so why not use it up, eh? So, I made the syrup just like I would with sugar...twice as much splenda as water, in a pan. The splenda completely dissolved in the water without even heating it. But it seemed rather thin, and had a funky after taste. So I decided to try adding some vegetable glycerine, which is very sweet. It didn't make it any thicker, but it helped with the after taste. I used my homemade vanilla extract (2 tsp), boiled the syrup for a couple minutes to burn off the alcohol, and it is FABULOUS! Sooo much better than the storebought stuff! Here's the finished product:
Cheap, easy, SUPER yummy, and easy to store in the bottles I already had. I like that. :-)Have a great day, all!
Interview with Leslie at Cheap By Choice
I'd like to thank Leslie at Cheap By Choice for letting me interview her. If you haven't checked out her blog, chock full of money-saving and money-making tips, you're missing out!
1. What's important to you?
My family is important to me. They will always come first.
2. What are your top five favorite "things" (or people, or places, etc.)?
Top favorite things:
1. the beach
2. sleeping in on a Saturday morning
3. diet coke
4. finding a bargain
5. great thrift shop finds
3. What has been the biggest moment of your life (that you're willing to share publicly), and what has it meant for you?
There are too many great moments to mention.
4. What is your favorite blog post (of yours)?
My favorite blog post was recently complaining about my husband spending too much money at Walmart.
5. I see that you're a social worker. Do you mind if I ask what kind of social work you do, and what it means for you?
I have been a social worker for 25 years. I have spent most of the last 15 years working with mentally ill adults. They are funny, challenging, intelligent and often misunderstood by those around them. If I could change one thing, it would be that the public be more educated about mental illness and become less afraid of it.
1. What's important to you?
My family is important to me. They will always come first.
2. What are your top five favorite "things" (or people, or places, etc.)?
Top favorite things:
1. the beach
2. sleeping in on a Saturday morning
3. diet coke
4. finding a bargain
5. great thrift shop finds
3. What has been the biggest moment of your life (that you're willing to share publicly), and what has it meant for you?
There are too many great moments to mention.
4. What is your favorite blog post (of yours)?
My favorite blog post was recently complaining about my husband spending too much money at Walmart.
5. I see that you're a social worker. Do you mind if I ask what kind of social work you do, and what it means for you?
I have been a social worker for 25 years. I have spent most of the last 15 years working with mentally ill adults. They are funny, challenging, intelligent and often misunderstood by those around them. If I could change one thing, it would be that the public be more educated about mental illness and become less afraid of it.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Interview Me!
I saw this over at Domestic Witch's blog and thought it sounded like fun.
If you would like to be interviewed by me, leave me a comment saying, "Interview me" along with your e-mail address. I will e-mail you with five questions. Respond with your answers and I will post your interview in my blog!
Update your blog with your interview. You can also offer to interview others in your blog.
If you would like to be interviewed by me, leave me a comment saying, "Interview me" along with your e-mail address. I will e-mail you with five questions. Respond with your answers and I will post your interview in my blog!
Update your blog with your interview. You can also offer to interview others in your blog.
Freedom!
So apparently yesterday was Freedom Of Information day. It does not pay to skip a day of reading my message boards. But heck, a day late and a dollar short is pretty much my motto.
It seems appropriate that one of the ways to honor this occasion would be to talk about adoptee rights - open records. It makes no sense to me that an entire section of the population would be kept from their own information because of something they didn't even have the ability to agree to. This is THEIR information. The rest of us can have it. Why can't they? I mean, really, what on Earth did adoptees do to be discriminated against? (Not that I believe those who are discriminated against generally "deserve" it...I'm just pointing out how absurd it is that they don't have equal rights...and generally when a group of people IS discriminated against, the oppressors have some bogus explanation as to why the oppressed "deserve" it.)
Later on today, I'm going to draft a letter to the editor of my local newspaper. I hope you all will do the same. Freedom of information, indeed. For ALL people. Equally. Thank you very much.
I'm going to go off track here for just a minute. I read this question earlier today on another forum: "What do you think would happen if right here in American millions of people representing our brightest, healthiest, and most culturally advanced were stolen and forced into slavery? What might be the consequence of such an atrocity?" I am not equating adoption with slavery...I think there are some fundamental differences. However, it is very important to note that adoptees have less rights than the average citizen - and consequently, they are treated as second-class citizens - and that they were not a party to the contract that created this discrimination. Only the fact that the child-adoptee is completely powerless makes this contract even possible...adult adoptions are rare, and never decided without the adoptee's consent.
Anyway, that wasn't my point (just tying the two completely separate thoughts together...hopefully in some kind of cohesive manner). My point is that I have found myself often lately shouting about victim blaming and how utterly, grossly, abhorantly unacceptable it is. The farther away from my own abusive past I get, the better I am able to see the circumstances that created my victimhood. I now know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I did NOTHING to bring on my own abuse (which CAN be equated with enslavement, in some ways). I was not a party to what happened to me. I did not create my abusers. I did not ask to be abused. And I absolutely will NOT stand by while others talk about what someone was wearing, or how hard it is to coerce someone who is "strong" (i.e. only "weak" people are coerced...pfft), or how "They wouldn't be [enslaved] because they were the brightest!". These statements are complete rubbish.
I AM SICK TO DEATH OF PEOPLE THINKING THAT VICTIMS HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH WHY THEY WERE VICTIMIZED!!!!!!!!!!!!
Have you ever heard that when women wear short skirts, they're "asking" to be raped? Guess what? She could have been wearing sweat pants and curlers, and STILL would have been raped, because rape is caused by RAPISTS, not victims. Women don't get raped when there are no rapists around.
I'm going to just copy and paste here my answer to the above enslavement question, rather than trying to reword it:
"Wow, it's really obvious that a couple of answerers have never experienced powerlessness. Their over-privileged lives have made it impossible to understand how to answer a question like this.
OP: All people have the potential to be the brightest, healthiest, most culturally advanced, etc. Often, when one is oppressed, they become the thing they are told they are - they become a self-fulfilled prophecy. When one is told they do not have rights, they FEEL that they have no rights. When one is told they are stupid, their performance drops. There are many studies that show this (have you seen the 'blue/brown eyes' study that a teacher did with her students?). And conversely, when people are held on a pedestal, told they are intelligent, etc., their performance increases, and they begin to feel they are 'better than' (as evidenced by a couple earlier answers).
This happens all the time. Each time a person or group of people are enslaved, we find out the answer to your question. This is an excellent film (although VERY tough to watch) that answers your question quite well: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/The_Experim... It's called learned helplessness. (Lots of research about that, too.)
It seems appropriate that one of the ways to honor this occasion would be to talk about adoptee rights - open records. It makes no sense to me that an entire section of the population would be kept from their own information because of something they didn't even have the ability to agree to. This is THEIR information. The rest of us can have it. Why can't they? I mean, really, what on Earth did adoptees do to be discriminated against? (Not that I believe those who are discriminated against generally "deserve" it...I'm just pointing out how absurd it is that they don't have equal rights...and generally when a group of people IS discriminated against, the oppressors have some bogus explanation as to why the oppressed "deserve" it.)
Later on today, I'm going to draft a letter to the editor of my local newspaper. I hope you all will do the same. Freedom of information, indeed. For ALL people. Equally. Thank you very much.
I'm going to go off track here for just a minute. I read this question earlier today on another forum: "What do you think would happen if right here in American millions of people representing our brightest, healthiest, and most culturally advanced were stolen and forced into slavery? What might be the consequence of such an atrocity?" I am not equating adoption with slavery...I think there are some fundamental differences. However, it is very important to note that adoptees have less rights than the average citizen - and consequently, they are treated as second-class citizens - and that they were not a party to the contract that created this discrimination. Only the fact that the child-adoptee is completely powerless makes this contract even possible...adult adoptions are rare, and never decided without the adoptee's consent.
Anyway, that wasn't my point (just tying the two completely separate thoughts together...hopefully in some kind of cohesive manner). My point is that I have found myself often lately shouting about victim blaming and how utterly, grossly, abhorantly unacceptable it is. The farther away from my own abusive past I get, the better I am able to see the circumstances that created my victimhood. I now know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I did NOTHING to bring on my own abuse (which CAN be equated with enslavement, in some ways). I was not a party to what happened to me. I did not create my abusers. I did not ask to be abused. And I absolutely will NOT stand by while others talk about what someone was wearing, or how hard it is to coerce someone who is "strong" (i.e. only "weak" people are coerced...pfft), or how "They wouldn't be [enslaved] because they were the brightest!". These statements are complete rubbish.
I AM SICK TO DEATH OF PEOPLE THINKING THAT VICTIMS HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH WHY THEY WERE VICTIMIZED!!!!!!!!!!!!
Have you ever heard that when women wear short skirts, they're "asking" to be raped? Guess what? She could have been wearing sweat pants and curlers, and STILL would have been raped, because rape is caused by RAPISTS, not victims. Women don't get raped when there are no rapists around.
I'm going to just copy and paste here my answer to the above enslavement question, rather than trying to reword it:
"Wow, it's really obvious that a couple of answerers have never experienced powerlessness. Their over-privileged lives have made it impossible to understand how to answer a question like this.
OP: All people have the potential to be the brightest, healthiest, most culturally advanced, etc. Often, when one is oppressed, they become the thing they are told they are - they become a self-fulfilled prophecy. When one is told they do not have rights, they FEEL that they have no rights. When one is told they are stupid, their performance drops. There are many studies that show this (have you seen the 'blue/brown eyes' study that a teacher did with her students?). And conversely, when people are held on a pedestal, told they are intelligent, etc., their performance increases, and they begin to feel they are 'better than' (as evidenced by a couple earlier answers).
This happens all the time. Each time a person or group of people are enslaved, we find out the answer to your question. This is an excellent film (although VERY tough to watch) that answers your question quite well: http://www.netflix.com/Movie/The_Experim... It's called learned helplessness. (Lots of research about that, too.)
Victim blaming is absolutely 100% unacceptable."
I don't have a good way to tie this all up. I feel like I've had a good rant today. It feels SO GOOD to just SAY those things! We ALL deserve to have our own information! We ALL deserve to have equal rights! We ALL deserve to be treated with respect and dignity! We ALL can/could be victims! Victims are created by abusers, NOT victims! FREEDOM! (Said in my best William Wallace bellow.)
I don't have a good way to tie this all up. I feel like I've had a good rant today. It feels SO GOOD to just SAY those things! We ALL deserve to have our own information! We ALL deserve to have equal rights! We ALL deserve to be treated with respect and dignity! We ALL can/could be victims! Victims are created by abusers, NOT victims! FREEDOM! (Said in my best William Wallace bellow.)
Monday, March 16, 2009
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Baby Wearing
Ok, this post is going to be weird. Why? Because I'm not a mother, but I'm on the verge of being obsessed with something that pretty much requires motherhood. Maybe I'm the only one who thinks this is weird, I don't know.
My bff, Shannon, has a brand spankin' new baby boy. She is nursing, which she was not able to do with her daughter. She is finding that when babies nurse, they eat a LOT more than they do if their food comes from a bottle. (I have visited her a couple times this last week, and I can attest to that!) I was reading over at Stephanie's blog, Steph, Jeff, and Co. and saw her sidebar about baby wearing. I'm HOOKED! I kept telling Shannon about this, and sent her at least six emails with probably about 50 links (which a mother with a newborn isn't going to have time to wade through). When I realized that she wasn't going to have the chance to figure out this baby wearing thing on her own, it became my mission to get her some fabric and show her a couple quick wraps.
I visited her last week to give her Owen's afghan, and we missed the craft store by minutes. (Personally, I think she's got some massive stash of fabric hidden in her garage that she didn't want to dig through...but who can blame her? She's got enough going on without having to dig through boxes and rubbermaid tubs.) Then, on my way home, I had that fiasco on the ice, which resulted in the car being left in the middle of a mountain pass. Shannon picked it up a few days later when the weather was better. So, we went to pick it up today. I was SO EXCITED!!! We finally got some fabric for a baby wrap! And of course, I didn't think to take pictures.
But hey, I'm NOT complaining! I finally got to show her a couple quick and easy wraps. Maybe next time I visit, I'll have more to show her, but for now, she's got a decent start! Yippee!
My bff, Shannon, has a brand spankin' new baby boy. She is nursing, which she was not able to do with her daughter. She is finding that when babies nurse, they eat a LOT more than they do if their food comes from a bottle. (I have visited her a couple times this last week, and I can attest to that!) I was reading over at Stephanie's blog, Steph, Jeff, and Co. and saw her sidebar about baby wearing. I'm HOOKED! I kept telling Shannon about this, and sent her at least six emails with probably about 50 links (which a mother with a newborn isn't going to have time to wade through). When I realized that she wasn't going to have the chance to figure out this baby wearing thing on her own, it became my mission to get her some fabric and show her a couple quick wraps.
I visited her last week to give her Owen's afghan, and we missed the craft store by minutes. (Personally, I think she's got some massive stash of fabric hidden in her garage that she didn't want to dig through...but who can blame her? She's got enough going on without having to dig through boxes and rubbermaid tubs.) Then, on my way home, I had that fiasco on the ice, which resulted in the car being left in the middle of a mountain pass. Shannon picked it up a few days later when the weather was better. So, we went to pick it up today. I was SO EXCITED!!! We finally got some fabric for a baby wrap! And of course, I didn't think to take pictures.
But hey, I'm NOT complaining! I finally got to show her a couple quick and easy wraps. Maybe next time I visit, I'll have more to show her, but for now, she's got a decent start! Yippee!
Friday, March 13, 2009
RAOK Friday
So, this is my third post in a row mentioning the Adoptee Rights Demonstration. Can you tell I think it's important? Anyway, I saw the above RAOK Fridays icon (is that the right terminology), and I thought, hey...that would be cool. Well, what better blog to give this to than the Adoptee Rights Demonstration???
Equal rights for all! Unrestricted access to birth records for all!!!
Please support adult adoptees in gaining the same rights we all have - access to their original birth certificates.
Sisterhood Award
Aaaack! Oh my goodness, I've already gotten my first award! I'm so excited! Thank you to Together We Save for this award.
I'm supposed to nominate 5 blogs that show Attitude and/or Gratitude. Here are my 5 nominations (and to be clear, the ones that are adoption related are NOT being nominated for gratitude!):
Happy reading!
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Adoptees
The issue of adoption has been a subject of intense study for me over the last few years. My husband and I are "former" prospective adoptive parents. Until a few weeks ago, we had planned to adopt via the state's special needs (i.e. foster care) program. Those plans have been put on hold, but will most likely not be resumed, for various reasons. But that's not my point. My point is that over the last few years, I spent a LOT of time reading and researching about adoption from the point of view of the children I meant to raise. And the best source of information I've ever been able to find has been from adult adoptees.
Some things I've learned, in no particular order:
Adoptees in the USA do not have access to their own birth certificates, except in six states
The sealing of birth information is a rather new occurrance, having begun in the 1930's
The original purpose behind sealing these records was NOT to protect the original parents (in other words, "birth" parent privacy is a myth...no "birth" parent has ever been guaranteed privacy)
Access to records of one's birth is a RIGHT for all other American citizens - just not for adoptees. Why should they have less rights? What have they done wrong to be denied the rights the rest of us have?
This is just scratching the surface, but I wanted to throw out a few bits of information that don't seem to be widely known or understood outside of those involved with the fight for adoptee rights.
And on that note, I'll explain that poster I have up at the top of this post. Last year, a group of adoptees gathered in New Orleans to talk to legislators about opening records so that adoptees will have the same rights as all other American citizens, and they're doing it again this year. Every human being should have access to their own information. It should be a human right - not a non-adoptee right. Please help my friends, and support the Adoptee Rights Demonstration. Here are some ways you can help:
Donate
Write a letter
Spread the word
Share the video
If you're interested in more information about closed records, here are some helpful links:
The Adoptee Rights Demonstration
The Basic Bastard
Adoption History: Confidentiality and Sealed Records
And if you go through the blogs I've subscribed to (and wade through all the coupon ones, lol), you will find some awesome blogs written by adoptees and first mothers. I'll add onto this tomorrow with more links.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Chili!!!
The last post (the one with the "recipe") was way too long, so rather than add on to it, I figured I'd post a new one. The chili is done! Yippee! We decided to have the chili over baked potatoes with some cheese, and it is GOOOOOOOD. Funny, though...I forgot to add the TVP...oh well, it's still delish!
Aaaaaaaaand, here's the steup! I haven't broken it down yet, but it will make at least six meals.
ETA: Thanks to Casey for letting me know I need to explain what TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein) is. Have you ever seen those "veggie crumbles" in the grocery store freezer section? Morningstar farms has them in a green bag. They are YUMMY! And they are made from TVP. But you can also buy TVP in the bulk section and flavor it yourself.
Aaaaaaaaand, here's the steup! I haven't broken it down yet, but it will make at least six meals.
ETA: Thanks to Casey for letting me know I need to explain what TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein) is. Have you ever seen those "veggie crumbles" in the grocery store freezer section? Morningstar farms has them in a green bag. They are YUMMY! And they are made from TVP. But you can also buy TVP in the bulk section and flavor it yourself.
My Crock Pots
Oh my, this is going to be a long one. But it's going to be FUN, too! Ok, a little known fact about moi: I own three crock pots. Yep, three. Here's the story. I wanted a crock pot...oh I don't know, a few years back. When I want something, Jason usually makes sure I end up getting it during the holidays or for my birthday or something. So, when I said I wanted a crock pot, he got me one. I LOVE this crock pot. It's enormous (I think it's the largest size you can find). (I'll add in pics later on in this post...you're going to see two out of the three crock pots today anyway.)
Then, when it looked like my first crock pot's crock was cracking (say that 10 times fast), I asked for a replacement crock. Jason couldn't find one, so he got me a new crock pot like this one (this would be the one I'm not using today).
THEN, I decided I wanted a smaller crock pot because, my goodness, there's only two of us. I love cooking extra and freezing, but it's not always necessary. So, he got me a smaller one.
Now for the real meat of this post. I'm in a very crock-potty mood today, so I decided to throw out some recipes. The first one, Cabbage Steup, is a recipe my bff gave me. She has since found a similar recipe online, but this is her own creation. The second one is a Chili recipe that I kind of mixed and matched from two recipes I found online (years ago...I have no clue where I found them), so it's kinda my own recipe.
Alrighty then, without further ado:
Cabbage Steup (btw, it's kinda like stew, and kinda like soup...)
32 oz. vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
1 medium or large cabbage, chopped
2 - 28 oz cans or 1 - 56 oz can of chunky tomato sauce
28 oz water
14 oz can kidney beans, drained
1 can sliced carrots, drained
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 can cut green beans, drained
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
Optional ingredients:
3-4 chicken breasts
3-4 medium/large potatoes
Add broth, cabbage, tomato sauce, and water to a large crock pot (you need the biggest crock pot possible, or two smaller crock pots) (add potatoes and chicken at this time, too). Cook in crock pot until cabbage is 3.4 cooked (looks somewhat transparent). Add remaining ingredients and salt, pepper, garlic, and bay leaves and cook for another 1-2 hours or until cabbage is soft (and chicken and potatoes are cooked).
Now, I personally do it a little differently. I apologize that I didn't get pictures from the beginning, but I didn't think about it until I already had a few ingredients in the pot. So, here's what I did. First, I prefer to not use canned stuff if I don't have to, so I soaked some dry kidney beans over night, and put a couple cups (give or take) in the crock pot. I also have this enormous stockpile of dried vegetables that I like to throw in everything so that I can use it up. I also add an onion. So, here's the cabbage steup that far, along with the first half of the cabbage:
Now it may not look like there's a lot of cabbage in there, but when you add in the second half, it nearly fills up the crock:
I also add raw carrots at the beginning instead of canned (and I'd put in raw corn and green beans, too, if I had them):
And of course, I didn't have tomato sauce (I could have sworn we had a couple cans, but whatever), so I just used 2 cans of diced tomatoes and 2 cans of tomato paste:
I also didn't have any broth, so I used vegetable boillion cubes and added some water. So, once everything is in the crock, mix it up as well as you can without spilling stuff all over (because at this point, it's VERY full), and set it to cook:
Ok, now on to the chili. Since I messed around with this recipe so much, I'm not going to put the actual recipe up, I'm just going to explain what I did. I soaked enough beans last night to make both recipes, so I threw in the beans, dried veggies (the ones I'm using up), a packet of chili seasoning (or you can use cumin, pepper, chili powder, and salt), and one onion before my first picture was taken:
Then I added 2 cans of diced tomatoes:
And some water (about a cup, give or take), mixed it all up, and set it to cook, too:
This recipe could easily be doubled even in my little crock pot...I just keep forgetting to actually do it. Anyway, that's what I spent my morning on. Oh yeah, and making laundry soap (couldn't start the laundry until that was made because *ahem* Jason didn't tell me - again - that we were out of laundry soap *tapping my foot*). Now that dinner is cooking, I've got to get busy! Have a fabulous day!
ETA: I forgot to mention, we're "mostly" vegetarian, so instead of ground beef, I'll be adding TVP to the chili later on. You can add ground beef or whatever meat you want to this. The recipe I used that had ground beef in it was not for the crock pot, so I don't know whether you should add raw ground beef at the beginning, or cook it separately and add it at the end.
Then, when it looked like my first crock pot's crock was cracking (say that 10 times fast), I asked for a replacement crock. Jason couldn't find one, so he got me a new crock pot like this one (this would be the one I'm not using today).
THEN, I decided I wanted a smaller crock pot because, my goodness, there's only two of us. I love cooking extra and freezing, but it's not always necessary. So, he got me a smaller one.
Now for the real meat of this post. I'm in a very crock-potty mood today, so I decided to throw out some recipes. The first one, Cabbage Steup, is a recipe my bff gave me. She has since found a similar recipe online, but this is her own creation. The second one is a Chili recipe that I kind of mixed and matched from two recipes I found online (years ago...I have no clue where I found them), so it's kinda my own recipe.
Alrighty then, without further ado:
Cabbage Steup (btw, it's kinda like stew, and kinda like soup...)
32 oz. vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
1 medium or large cabbage, chopped
2 - 28 oz cans or 1 - 56 oz can of chunky tomato sauce
28 oz water
14 oz can kidney beans, drained
1 can sliced carrots, drained
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 can cut green beans, drained
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
Optional ingredients:
3-4 chicken breasts
3-4 medium/large potatoes
Add broth, cabbage, tomato sauce, and water to a large crock pot (you need the biggest crock pot possible, or two smaller crock pots) (add potatoes and chicken at this time, too). Cook in crock pot until cabbage is 3.4 cooked (looks somewhat transparent). Add remaining ingredients and salt, pepper, garlic, and bay leaves and cook for another 1-2 hours or until cabbage is soft (and chicken and potatoes are cooked).
Now, I personally do it a little differently. I apologize that I didn't get pictures from the beginning, but I didn't think about it until I already had a few ingredients in the pot. So, here's what I did. First, I prefer to not use canned stuff if I don't have to, so I soaked some dry kidney beans over night, and put a couple cups (give or take) in the crock pot. I also have this enormous stockpile of dried vegetables that I like to throw in everything so that I can use it up. I also add an onion. So, here's the cabbage steup that far, along with the first half of the cabbage:
Now it may not look like there's a lot of cabbage in there, but when you add in the second half, it nearly fills up the crock:
I also add raw carrots at the beginning instead of canned (and I'd put in raw corn and green beans, too, if I had them):
And of course, I didn't have tomato sauce (I could have sworn we had a couple cans, but whatever), so I just used 2 cans of diced tomatoes and 2 cans of tomato paste:
I also didn't have any broth, so I used vegetable boillion cubes and added some water. So, once everything is in the crock, mix it up as well as you can without spilling stuff all over (because at this point, it's VERY full), and set it to cook:
Ok, now on to the chili. Since I messed around with this recipe so much, I'm not going to put the actual recipe up, I'm just going to explain what I did. I soaked enough beans last night to make both recipes, so I threw in the beans, dried veggies (the ones I'm using up), a packet of chili seasoning (or you can use cumin, pepper, chili powder, and salt), and one onion before my first picture was taken:
Then I added 2 cans of diced tomatoes:
And some water (about a cup, give or take), mixed it all up, and set it to cook, too:
This recipe could easily be doubled even in my little crock pot...I just keep forgetting to actually do it. Anyway, that's what I spent my morning on. Oh yeah, and making laundry soap (couldn't start the laundry until that was made because *ahem* Jason didn't tell me - again - that we were out of laundry soap *tapping my foot*). Now that dinner is cooking, I've got to get busy! Have a fabulous day!ETA: I forgot to mention, we're "mostly" vegetarian, so instead of ground beef, I'll be adding TVP to the chili later on. You can add ground beef or whatever meat you want to this. The recipe I used that had ground beef in it was not for the crock pot, so I don't know whether you should add raw ground beef at the beginning, or cook it separately and add it at the end.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
My Job
Granted, my job satisfaction has dwindled a tad since the economy and low numbers has necessitated my hours being cut (which, in itself, would still not be a big issue if it had been handled the same way all the other employees' cutbacks were handled), BUT I still love my job.
Yes. I work THERE. It's gorgeous, all year round. Not to mention it's just generally a great place to work. The people I work with are all incredibly supportive, it's fun to work there, the work is challenging, and even though it's expensive to work there because it's so far away, I wouldn't give up the drive for anything.
Yes. I work THERE. It's gorgeous, all year round. Not to mention it's just generally a great place to work. The people I work with are all incredibly supportive, it's fun to work there, the work is challenging, and even though it's expensive to work there because it's so far away, I wouldn't give up the drive for anything.
Monday, March 9, 2009
My UNfavorite Things
I'm going to have to add a regular "My UNfavorite Things" section to this blog. My inspiration comes from almost DYING last night on my way home from giving Owen his afghan. Tiffany, if you read this, no offense. That car we bought from you SUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCKS! It's great having two cars, don't get me wrong. Let me count my blessings here for just a second:
It's REALLY nice to not have to get up at 5am to take Jason to work in the morning so that I can have the car to get myself to work. 5am and I are not friends.
HOWEVER, if you've ever owned a rear wheel drive car in the winter, you know you may as well leave the POS at home. We don't get much winter weather here, and this winter has been even nicer than normal. But still...every time I think I'm safe driving that car when it's questionable, I end up fishtailing out of control (we're not talking a little fishtail here, we're talking spinning wildly through 3-4 lanes). Thankfully, each time this has happened, the road has been nearly empty.
Another blessing I have to count: When I spun through 3 lanes last night, I went the right direction. Had I gone toward my side of the road, I'd have gone off an embankment. Seeing as how I kinda like this life thing (even though it is expensive, and it kinda creeps me out that it's sexually transmitted and always results in death), I'm glad that if I had to lose all control of the car, spin out wildly, being flung to and fro for about 10 seconds until the car finally slammed into a curb (why there's a curb on a mountain road, I know not, but it is one more thing I have to be thankful for), at least I spun the one direction that was least likely to result in death.
After I checked all my body parts and car parts to make sure we were all intact, I started the car and straightened myself out (I was facing toward the lane I had been driving in) and pulled over. Then, I realized I was in the middle of a curve, on a sheet of black ice, halfway into the far right lane because there was no place to pull over. I decided to head back to Shannon's...and promptly changed my mind, and just found the closest place to pull over.
Another blessing: Even though my cell phone disagreed about this little factoid, I DID have a signal, and was on the phone most of the time I was waiting, either to Shannon or Jason.
Since the rest of the story isn't life-threatening (and is probably only interesting to me), I'll skip to the end. I was a little bit frustrated to find out that this horrid section of road was no more than 6 miles. I could have crawled along at 2 mph until I got to a safe place and I would have been fine. But I wasn't keeping track (from now on, when I go up to Shannon's house, I'm keeping track of what landmarks are where), and I thought I was in the middle of the pass. Poor Jason had to come pick me up, not getting to bed until 1am (and having to turn around and get up for work at 5am) just for six lousy miles of ice.
And there I have one more thing to be thankful for. Two, actually. I have chosen some really, really awesome people to have in my life. Shannon stayed on the phone with me most of the time I was up there, even though she has a newborn baby to take care of and she was exhausted. And Jason gave up a lot of sleep to drive all that way. Those two people most certainly top my list of favorite "things".
It's REALLY nice to not have to get up at 5am to take Jason to work in the morning so that I can have the car to get myself to work. 5am and I are not friends.
HOWEVER, if you've ever owned a rear wheel drive car in the winter, you know you may as well leave the POS at home. We don't get much winter weather here, and this winter has been even nicer than normal. But still...every time I think I'm safe driving that car when it's questionable, I end up fishtailing out of control (we're not talking a little fishtail here, we're talking spinning wildly through 3-4 lanes). Thankfully, each time this has happened, the road has been nearly empty.
Another blessing I have to count: When I spun through 3 lanes last night, I went the right direction. Had I gone toward my side of the road, I'd have gone off an embankment. Seeing as how I kinda like this life thing (even though it is expensive, and it kinda creeps me out that it's sexually transmitted and always results in death), I'm glad that if I had to lose all control of the car, spin out wildly, being flung to and fro for about 10 seconds until the car finally slammed into a curb (why there's a curb on a mountain road, I know not, but it is one more thing I have to be thankful for), at least I spun the one direction that was least likely to result in death.
After I checked all my body parts and car parts to make sure we were all intact, I started the car and straightened myself out (I was facing toward the lane I had been driving in) and pulled over. Then, I realized I was in the middle of a curve, on a sheet of black ice, halfway into the far right lane because there was no place to pull over. I decided to head back to Shannon's...and promptly changed my mind, and just found the closest place to pull over.
Another blessing: Even though my cell phone disagreed about this little factoid, I DID have a signal, and was on the phone most of the time I was waiting, either to Shannon or Jason.
Since the rest of the story isn't life-threatening (and is probably only interesting to me), I'll skip to the end. I was a little bit frustrated to find out that this horrid section of road was no more than 6 miles. I could have crawled along at 2 mph until I got to a safe place and I would have been fine. But I wasn't keeping track (from now on, when I go up to Shannon's house, I'm keeping track of what landmarks are where), and I thought I was in the middle of the pass. Poor Jason had to come pick me up, not getting to bed until 1am (and having to turn around and get up for work at 5am) just for six lousy miles of ice.
And there I have one more thing to be thankful for. Two, actually. I have chosen some really, really awesome people to have in my life. Shannon stayed on the phone with me most of the time I was up there, even though she has a newborn baby to take care of and she was exhausted. And Jason gave up a lot of sleep to drive all that way. Those two people most certainly top my list of favorite "things".
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Owen's Afghan
I finished Owen's Afghan! I'm going to head up to see him and his Mommy (my bff) today and give it to him. Here are a couple pictures.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
My Journal
What's really crazy is that I've only used up about a third of this book. It's got a TON of pages. It's handmade, and I purchased it at a Pagan shop, which makes me feel good. I like knowing that I'm supporting a local artist. I'm not a huge fan of Hello Kitty, but did you notice that she's a Witch? ;-) Yeah, my other car is a broom, too, Kitty.
SARK
My friend, Gloria, turned me on to Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy, aka SARK. Even if you've never heard of her before, chances are you've seen her inspirational posters in doctor's offices, teacher's lounges or classrooms, counseling centers, and other places. But I didn't truly "discover" SARK until I read her books. I have read, so far, Succulent Wild Woman, The Bodacious Book of Succulence, and Living Juicy (which is always a work in progress - this one is a daily meditation type book, and I love that I can just pick it up and read a page or two every now and then, and not lose my place). I love calling her inspiration line (415-546-3742) for a pick me up (it's a recorded message, available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week). She changes the message very infrequently, but even when I've listened to the same one 15 times, it doesn't get old.
The first time I picked up one of SARK's books, I just cried and cried. I felt like she was reaching directly into my soul and pulling out threads that match the colors of her own soul. I felt this sense of, "do you see how we are similar? Do you feel that we are all one?" It really awakened me to the reality that we all have similar feelings...but we've been taught to hide and suppress those feelings that aren't pretty. SARK has been a huge inspiration to me - to refuse to be silenced, to refuse to put a pretty face on my un-pretty emotions, to embrace my faults, and to allow others to be faulty without needing to fix them. Of course, I'm a work in progress, but I embrace that, too.
I feel like giving myself a great big hug right now. Why don't you do the same? Just wrap your arms around yourself and squeeze like the dickens! You deserve it!
Making A Home
I have dreamed for the last few years that I would one day be a homemaker. It appears that this isn't in the cards (at least not for quite some time), but I still enjoy making a home.
This afghan was so much fun to make. At the time, I was working over night at a residential treatment facility for troubled youth, and the majority of this afghan was completed while I was at work. It's mostly done in granny squares, with borders around each of three sets of granny squares.
I love to crochet. I'm currently working on another granny square afghan, this time for my brand spankin' new nephew. Here's a really bad cell phone picture of it (it's much bigger now):
My coworker recently made copies for me from a book that has patterns for crocheting little dolls (I forget what they're called), and I'm looking forward to trying my hand at those.
I tend to waffle back and forth between extreme laziness and an extreme desire to make a beautiful, homey, warm, inviting home. But even when I'm in my lazy phase, I try to take pride in the home I HAVE made, and all that I've accomplished so far. This afghan was a huge accomplishment for me, and I love it!
This afghan was so much fun to make. At the time, I was working over night at a residential treatment facility for troubled youth, and the majority of this afghan was completed while I was at work. It's mostly done in granny squares, with borders around each of three sets of granny squares.I love to crochet. I'm currently working on another granny square afghan, this time for my brand spankin' new nephew. Here's a really bad cell phone picture of it (it's much bigger now):
My coworker recently made copies for me from a book that has patterns for crocheting little dolls (I forget what they're called), and I'm looking forward to trying my hand at those.
I tend to waffle back and forth between extreme laziness and an extreme desire to make a beautiful, homey, warm, inviting home. But even when I'm in my lazy phase, I try to take pride in the home I HAVE made, and all that I've accomplished so far. This afghan was a huge accomplishment for me, and I love it!
Friday, March 6, 2009
My Bread Machine
I think I'm going to like it a whole lot more now. Check this out! So apparently, the ingredient I've been missing is vital wheat gluten. Scroll down to "Our Daily Bread" for an awesome whole wheat bread recipe in the bread machine. I'll have to make bread next week. I have a ton of bread right now (3 loaves...who needs that much for two people?), so I'll have to wait to experiment, but I'm looking forward to it!
Making Stuff
Another of my favorite things (definitely nearing the top of the list) is making stuff. I'm sure I'll post many, many entries about the stuff I make, and I'm really looking forward to those posts. But for now, how about if I post about my Homemade Vanilla Extract.
This picture is from the day I first put everything together. My plan was to make Vanilla Extract for the holidays this year, and give the bottles out as gifts. I usually end up making between 15-30 jars to give out. So, I bought a ton of alcohol, a huge bag of beans, 3 dozen jars...and I gave away NINE jars as gifts. Which means I have a TON left. I've researched on the internet, and Pure Vanilla Extract is pretty pricey. I've been selling bottles to friends and co-workers at rock bottom prices, and I'm so glad they're selling. It's steeped for about 3 months, and it's all ready to go.
I've heard great reviews from friends and family who have used it (from my sister in law: "Just letting ya know i cracked the lid on that Vanilla its makes some really good pancakes....kids gobbled them up like they were goin out of style....lol thank you").
Oh, and the best part? It's perpetual Vanilla! As you use it up, just keep adding vodka. Since I'm leaving the beans in the jars, it will just keep making more Vanilla Extract. So, this one bottle will last for years! It smells delicious, too.
This picture is from the day I first put everything together. My plan was to make Vanilla Extract for the holidays this year, and give the bottles out as gifts. I usually end up making between 15-30 jars to give out. So, I bought a ton of alcohol, a huge bag of beans, 3 dozen jars...and I gave away NINE jars as gifts. Which means I have a TON left. I've researched on the internet, and Pure Vanilla Extract is pretty pricey. I've been selling bottles to friends and co-workers at rock bottom prices, and I'm so glad they're selling. It's steeped for about 3 months, and it's all ready to go.
I've heard great reviews from friends and family who have used it (from my sister in law: "Just letting ya know i cracked the lid on that Vanilla its makes some really good pancakes....kids gobbled them up like they were goin out of style....lol thank you").Oh, and the best part? It's perpetual Vanilla! As you use it up, just keep adding vodka. Since I'm leaving the beans in the jars, it will just keep making more Vanilla Extract. So, this one bottle will last for years! It smells delicious, too.
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