Products and things I'm loving...

Happy Tuesday!  I hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day! 

I have to start by saying that I just love having a place where I can document everything going on in my life.  It's like a little virtual time capsule that I can come back and visit anytime!

So today I want to talk about some products that I am loving!  I want to say that this is not a paid advertisement; these just happen to be some products that I'm currently using and really enjoy!  I would not endorse anything that I don't use or don't stand behind, so check it out!

Tide Pods (Ocean Mist scent)

These little guys are so fabulous!  It's as simple as pulling a pod from the bag, throwing it into the tub of your high efficiency washing machine or traditional washing machine,  toss in your clothes and adjust the washer settings like you normally would and voila!  Your clothes come out smelling absolutely wonderful!  I love that this is so much easier than handling a big box of powder or a tub of liquid, too.  And when you pick up one to put in your washer, be careful!  They are all squishy and cute!  Resist the urge to squeeze!  I bought the ocean mist scent, which is perfect for summer, but there are a couple of other scents you can purchase, too.  Very functional!  In my book this gets a 10!  Way to go Tide!

Donut House Pods for Keurig (chocolate glazed donut)

You all know how much I love my Keurig!  In my opinion it's the best brewing machine!  When I originally bought the machine, it came with sample coffees and Donut House was one of them.  I enjoyed the Donut House regular brew, but the chocolate glazed donut brew that I just tried was awesome!  It tasted just like a chocolate glazed donut!  It was actually more like a chocolate cake donut to me!  Very good!

Simply Cranberry Cocktail

I love the entire Simply line!  First you had Simply orange, lemonade, raspberry lemonade, limeade and now add cranberry to the mix!  I have been adding cranberry to everything.  We've been adding this to tea and soda and sometimes when we are feeling really wild, we drink it by itself!  Another winner!


Lipton Blackberry Pomegranate Tea

This tea is so refreshing!  I enjoy a sweet tea, but I particularly enjoy a fruity sweet tea!  I especially enjoy blackberries and pomegranates!  And down in the South we have to stay hydrated, so this totally hit the spot!  Thank you Lipton!

Baked Penne/Rigatoni Pasta with Mozzarella

This is some of the best comfort food!  I don't eat much pasta, but when I do, this is what I prefer!  So good!  That sounded like a beer ad. 



That's all I have for now!  I hope to have more content in the coming weeks! 



   

Learning

As I have gotten older I have begun to look at life differently.  I have started to see life with new eyes every time I have reached a new level of maturity.  I feel like I have reached a few milestones the past couple of years and wanted to share with you.     

1.  I have a minor health issue and now I want to take the bull by the horns!  In my case, I want to take up hobbies, travel, renovate our house, etc.  This type of behavior is usually either out of fear (maybe as a coping mechanism) or reaching the age where you begin to have no fear.  This sounds more like an oxymoron, but it's true.  I have briefly discussed before that I have ulcerative colitis and so I count my blessings every day because it is not terminal.  But, like any chronic condition that is still in the treatment process, it can be tiring.  I think it is because of this that there are so many things that I want to do while I still can.    

2.  Back to the fear part!  I am learning to become fearless.  I want to take on challenges.  That is why I love being in my mid-30s.  I have already seen so much and been around the block a few times, that I have got a pretty good handle on things as they are thrown my direction.  So when you hear people talk about how their lives get better as they get older...it's so true!

3.  I've learned that the Lord knows me better than I could ever know myself.  Some of you may not know that I lost twins two years ago this past February.  That was a very difficult time for the hubs and I.  We had gone through IVF treatment and lost our miracle babies.  But, I'm so thankful that if we had to go down that road, it happened the way it did.  I absolutely cannot imagine getting further along in my pregnancy and losing my child or losing a baby after it is born.  I look up to my angels today and tell them that they are with the best babysitter there is!  They know that one day I hope to join them, but they also know that I still have work to do here.  They will never be forgotten by us.

4.  I've learned that arrogant people fall hard, but have the biggest comebacks.  Yes, we all fall hard at some point or multiple points in our adult lives, but these people tend to make huge comebacks!

5.  I've learned that no matter what, I must show compassion and less judgement. 

6.  I've learned that I don't like being underestimated, distrusted or doubted and I so must not to do this to others.  

7.  I've learned that the Golden Rule is the rule to live by!  Treat others as you want to be treated. 

8.  I've learned that I love McAlister's Deli sweet tea!  I also like an occasional Arnold Palmer.  The same is not true for the hubs.

9.  I've learned to be strong over the past year for the hubs as he continues his schooling.

10.  I've learned that reading minds is not my forte'.  This is where I use the hubs logic of only go by the information you have and don't try to guess how someone got from Point A to Point B.  It is a waste of precious energy that could be spent doing other things that bring joy.  This was actually a New Year's Resolution for me this year.  I have been working diligently on this. 

11.  I've learned that the hubs is not "mine".  He belongs to the Lord and I have been chosen to take care of him while he is on this Earth.  And so I must treat him accordingly. 

12.  I've learned that positive people appreciate positive reinforcement.

13.  I've learned that boots are the most comfortable shoes ever, with the only exception being flip flops or barefoot.  And if you are like me and have awful feet, you know exactly what I mean.  I even made a trip to Cavender's for the first time a few weeks ago to try on boots.

14.  I've learned that I absolutely love the outdoors!  I have been envisioning the hubs and I buying land in the next few years.

15.  I've learned that summers in Louisiana are hot and muggy...and just around the corner. 

So, what have you learned over the past few years?  I would love to hear about it!

Have a great weekend!


 

                 





              

Radar Blips

Long time no posting!  Sorry!  I will try to post more regularly over the summer!

1.  Hubs is about to be out of school for summer vacation!  Yeah!  For the past 9 months I have handled the household chores myself.  I tried not to ask the hubs to do anything for fear it would interfere with everything he has going on in his schedule.  So that meant I had to suck it up and be the responsible adult that I am and take on some more tasks.  But knowing that this whole situation is temporary made it little easier to handle.

2.  This time next year the hubs will be done with his bachelor's degree and moving on to newer, exciting things such as working on obtaining a P.E. license. 

3.  We just bought a new truck and love it!  Hubs drove a 2005 Ford Escape for 7.5 years (bought in 2004) and was very ready for another car!  We had tossed around the idea of getting an Acura TSX, but needed the functionality of something bigger.  So we scrapped the idea of getting a luxury car and decided to make a more practical decision.  We are now the proud owners of a 2012 Toyota Tacoma!  The truck rides so nicely and is so comfortable.  We have noticed that there is hardly any road noise inside the vehicle, which we love because our previous vehicle was loud inside.  There are many other features about the truck that I love, but my favorite is the XM satellite radio!  I could listen to the 40s station all day long!  I also love the bluetooth functionality as well as being able to answer a phone call from the steering wheel.  It also has a backup camera for reversing, but I haven't come to rely on that, yet.  I probably should, though, because I am having trouble judging the length of the truck.  I would insert a picture of the truck here, but don't have one.  I will post one soon (more than likely most of you have already seen it).     

4.  I still love my 2007 Mazda 3!  It only has 35,000 miles on it and 20,000 of those miles were put on when I was commuting back and forth to Shreveport for work the first year I had it.  So over the past 4 years I have put 15,000 miles on my car.  I thank my lucky stars that I don't have to commute for work and my job is only 2.5 miles away from home.

5.  We will be taking a much-needed vacation soon!  We have a concert in Dallas to attend that I bought tickets for 6 months ago and then we decided to spend some time at Beaver's Bend State Park in Oklahoma.  I cannot wait to go hiking and canoeing!  I love the outdoors so much!  This vacation is perfect for us...a little bit of city with a little bit of country! 

6.  If there is one thing that I have learned over the past year with having a husband who works ridiculous hours, goes to college full-time and spends every other waking moment doing homework, studying for tests/finals and working on projects, is that I am independent.  I couldn't say this a few years ago, but I have learned to find ways to keep myself busy.  And my heart goes out to military wives because not only are their husbands gone for extended periods of time, but their lives are also on the line.  And my hat is off to women that have to run a household on their own with children.  So I count my blessings everyday! 

7.  I'm lovin' American Idol!  I was originally a Holly fan, but it seemed like she was more concerned with the technical aspect of singing versus just getting up on the stage and letting the emotion roll through her.  That's about the time I started liking Skylar.  She showed up week after week and put on a show, in my opinion.  So last week I was so sad to see Skylar leave.  My next favorite is Joshua Ledet and not just because he's from Louisiana.  That boy can sing!  And I hope he wins because of it!

8.  I have been working on recipes, but not as often.  I made a decent strawberry shortcake last week, but the recipe needs to be tweaked a little before I post anything on it.  I have also had a heck of a time trying to find Pinnacle cake Vodka to make these strawberry shortcake martinis that I have been dying to make.  Look for recipes soon!     

9.  I have had a few issues with my health.  I have ulcerative colitis and my immune system is a booger!  I have tried multiple medications and it seems they start to work but then a few weeks later they aren't as effective.  That's my immune system going to work adjusting itself.  I am also in the process of changing specialists because my current specialist doesn't take my insurance anymore.  I hope to have a consultation with the new doctor in the coming weeks.  I know there is no cure for this disease, but if I could get my symptoms under control, I will be doing much better.  I would love to hear from anyone who reads my blog that has ulcerative colitis, Crohn's or ulcerative proctitis.  Have a you gone into remission?  Other than prescribed medication, did you have any natural methods of helping to achieve remission?  Please leave a comment! 

10.  I was watching a comedy (Bob's Burgers) the other night and it was about a food critic named the "Moody Foodie".  I thought that would be a great name for a food blog!  Then the hubs said I didn't need to have a food blog titled that because I am not moody.  That was probably the best compliment he's paid me this year!  It's nice to know when your spouse thinks you are chill.  :-)

Anyways, I hope you all have a great rest of the week and weekend! 

 


                    

     

Flop #3

Say hello to my little friend!  Flop #3!  This was supposed to be a yummy gooey dark chocolate chip caramel pecan brownie, but it turned out to be a mess in a pan!  Definitely nothing to write home about!  There were so many things that went wrong with this recipe, but I won't go into that this time around (there will be plenty of time to discuss failure logistics later).

Time to re-create this brownie and spin it in a new light!

Strawberry Pecan Cinnamon Rolls

Happy Friday! 

What are your plans this weekend?  Mine, you ask?  Well, "the hubs" and I plan on working in the yard and that should about sum up our weekend activities.  Other than doing the typical house chores, I am keepin' it on the down low! 

So, here's the scoop as of now...I made these rolls that look divine Thursday evening.  They are a different take on Ree Drummond's Spectacular Recipe.  I added strawberry flavoring to give the glaze a light strawberry flavor (no maple flavoring).  And instead of only cinnamon and butter in the roll, I added strawberry jam, so you've got a cinnamon-y strawberry thing going on in there...topped with chopped pecans.  Pronounced PE-cans.  Kidding.

This was my first.  I have never made a bread product from scratch in my life!  And tomorrow morning I'm taking these babies to work for an engineering breakfast and I SOOO hope that they go over well.  Maybe pastry chef is a hidden talent that is just now making it's way to the surface. 

So, we started with the dough mixture...

Then I rolled out the dough...

All of the inner components of yummy goodness...
         

The strawberry glaze...

The rolls a little smothered...in more yummy goodness.

You can get the recipe at the link I posted above.  In order to make strawberry rolls, again substitute strawberry flavoring for the glaze portion.  Add a light coating of strawberry jam to the roll, itself.  And top with chopped pecans.  Now...it's time for a taste test. 

Have a great weekend!

Spice Organization 101

This is just one of the things you do when you're a person who loves to be in the kitchen!  But, most importantly, when you're a person who loves to be in an organized kitchen!  It's also one of the things you do when your sweet husband crashes after a long quarter of engineering courses.  Bless his heart.  I can't wait for the summer to be here so that we can get back on track with our cycling.  I keep mentioning to "the hubs" that we should try the P90X.  We'll see what happens.  I heard it's pretty intense.  But working out and having time together to not worry about school and schedules and this and that is something we are both totally looking forward to.  Totally.

But, anyways, back on the spice track...

I decided to invest in these cute 4-ounce canning jars to hold my seasonings and spices.  I had originally seen this idea on another food blog and fell in love with it.  So, while "the hubs" crashed, I organized my seasonings! 

Cute, huh?  They are labeled with the name of the seasoning and the expiration date on the back of the jars.  I can easily change out the labels as needed.  Very inexpensive and charming! 

And I enjoyed a little of this while organizing...

  I'm still thirsty...headed to the kitchen for more tea.  Good night!

Caramelized Pimento & Onion Grilled Cheese with Bacon

I'm still sorta new to food blogging and y'all don't really know a lot about me just yet, but as time goes on, I promise you will get a better sense of who this fun-lovin' girl is in the kitchen!  And you might catch a glimpse of other happenings in my life as well!    For instance, I was just reading on a fellow food blogger's website that she has a weird obsession with Meryl Streep and she blames her obsession on the movie, "It's Complicated".  I LOVE this movie!  LOVE!  I had never really put a lot of thought into Meryl Streep basically because I had not seen many of her movies before.  But, this movie takes the cake.  Like, literally she makes a chocolate cake that makes you start to drool like a pooch.  Ha!  And don't get me started on the lavender honey ice cream she makes!  I want to create awesome flavors of ice cream like that!  I'm not even sure it was lavender honey ice cream, I just remember it was some exotic flavor that sounded wonderful.  She has a beautiful home that is in the process of being remodeled and she has an awesome bakery/restaurant in Santa Barbara.  She exuberates a quiet confidence and somehow seems relaxed while she's exuberating this so-called quiet confidence.  Putting her relationship struggles with her ex-husband aside, I am in LOVE with this movie character's life.  I want to be that woman that is confident and doesn't really have to put out a ton of effort.  You have to rent this movie to see for yourself.  If you are looking for a funny chic flick, this is it.  Then, you can be as enamored with her life as I am!  "Hubs" it's okay...no divorce is in your future. 

There's your tidbit for the day!  Now onto the serious stuff...like grilled cheese sandwiches. 

I'm in serious bliss right now.  This is absolute bliss!  Talk about a new spin on a pimento cheese sandwich.  I took a tried and true favorite and made it my own.  This is a must-have!  Your tastebuds will totally thank you! 

Caramelized Pimento & Onion Grilled Cheese with Bacon

1 8-ounce package of cheddar cheese
1 8-ounce package of monterrey jack cheese
1/2 cup Miracle Whip or mayonaise
2 4-ounce jars of diced pimentos
1/4 cup of diced white onions
4 Applewood smoked bacon slices
Sandwich sliced bread or Texas toast
Salt & Pepper
Butter for grilling sandwiches

First you want to cook your bacon in a skillet.  As the bacon is cooking, grate your cheeses and put cheese in a medium mixing bowl.  When the bacon finishes cooking, drain the pan of most bacon drippings and pinch bacon into pieces.  Throw bacon pieces onto the grated cheese.  Saute the pimentos and onion in the bacon pan and cook for about 5 minutes while stirring.  Then put the pimentos and onion mixture on top of the cheese and bacon.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Stir the mixture.  Add mixture between 2 slices of bread.  Melt butter in a frying pan and grill your sandwich.  Grill on both sides for about 3-4 minutes per side.

Does this look gooey enough?  Again, your tastebuds will totally thank you!  Go in your kitchen now and make this!  Hurry up now...



   


        

Creole Jambalaya

Happy Sunday!  What a beautiful day in Louisiana! 

This weekend has been nice.  I haven't done much except shop for food, clothing and jewelry.  Tough, right?  Friday night I went to Target and had a little too much fun in there...as always.  Yesterday, I drove to Ruston and went to The Beehive and had a little too much fun there, too.  Seriously good deals in that place!  And had to top it off when I went to get the groceries.  Lots-o-fun, I tell ya!  And now I'm faced with giving the dog a shower, doing the laundry, scrubbing the hot water heater closet and cleaning the rest of the house today.  I just have to have some downtime, you know?  One can only go so long before they have to seriously veg out!  So, we vegged out Saturday evening by making a slightly adapted recipe from Taste of Home!

Say hello to this little guy.  This was my contribution to dinner...peeling the tails off the shrimp. 

   

Creole Jambalaya

3/4 cup chopped onion  (I just used a frozen seasonal blend instead of fresh veggies)
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
2 tablespoons butter
2 garlic cloves, minced (I used garlic powder instead)
2 cups ham, cubed and fully cooked (Next time I will buy Boudin or chicken)
1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes, undiluted
1 cup uncooked long grain white rice (I used Minute Rice instead)
1 cup water (Don't add the cup of water if you use Minute Rice)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 to 1 1/2 pounds fresh or frozen uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (I used frozen fully cooked shrimp)
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley (I didn't use parsley)

In a Dutch oven (I just used a stock pot), saute' the onion, celery and green pepper in butter until tender.  Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer.  Add the next 9 ingredients; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer until rice is tender, which is about 25 minutes.

Add shrimp and parsley; simmer uncovered for 7-10 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. 

Yield:  8 servings.

Heat up a couple of rolls and you've got yourself a little taste of Louisiana! 

I have to say thanks to "the hubs" for being the cook in the kitchen Saturday evening!  You rock!

     

Coming Soon...

1-  Cajun dish

2-  Pimento Cheese with Bacon sandwiches

3-  Pork Chops in Tomato Gravy

Now off to do some kitchen organizing and meal planning!  Happy Friday eve!

Hot In Here

Sorry to keep you hangin'.  Been busy.  Out with the old...

...and in with the new.

Ain't she a beauty?  She's all computerized...and technical...and most importantly, hot!  I seem to refer to things in the female gender.  Not really sure why, I just do.  Tomorrow morning I will have hot water from the beginning of my shower to the end!  Beyond thrilled!  I just need to get our new found tank less water heater/broom closet in order.  That will consist of scrubbing the walls, floor and painting.  That will be this weekend's project. 

I have been in the kitchen since we last talked.  I have also bought batteries for my sweet camera.  But, the photos I've taken have left so much to be desired.  I asked "the hubs" to check it out...and...voila...the photos are much better now!  It's amazing what one little setting can do.  So,  expect to see much better food photography!  Yay for "the hubs"!  He can solve a problem like it's nobody's business!

Good night!