I've Come to Terms With the Fact That I'm Annoying

     Over the years, I've had to come to terms with the fact that some people find me annoying.  It's cool.  Not everyone can handle my brand of cheeriness.  I'm no stranger to being told that my happy-go-lucky morning-person attitude is revolting.  Probably because I heard it every morning from my mom as I tried to serenade her out of bed.  Friends at school would groan when I would be bouncing around at 6 am.  Coworkers would roll their eyes and keep walking when I would exclaim "Good Morning!" at 6:30 am.  My own daughter tells me to "go away" when she hears her door squeak open on a typical weekday morning.  I get it, but these days I have managed to find a whole new crowd of people to piss off with my happy.  I now have patients!

     This past week while working at the nursing home for school, I was asked to help feed one of the dementia patients who was not feeling too well that day.  I walked over to this sweet-looking elderly woman, who was holding her head in her hands and not even acknowledging that her food had been getting cold for the past 15 minutes.  I pulled up a chair next to her, sat down, and introduced myself.  The introduction was met with a groan, which was expected.  The woman clearly wasn't feeling well, so I gently asked her if she wanted to eat.  She shook her head no.  I prodded a little more, gently of course, and said that she needed to eat to feel better.  To that she snapped, "I'll eat when I'm darn good and ready to eat."

     Now, this was the first time my happy smile had been met with a grumpy retort, but I shrugged it off and walked over to the worker at the facility and told her that the woman clearly didn't want to eat.  She told me to go see if I could get her to at least pick her head up.  I steeled myself for more combat and return to my chair by the lady's side.  I asked again if she would like to try a little bit of her food.  She merely groaned at me.  That's when I was struck by a stroke of brilliance!  I would get her chatting with me, gain her trust, and then get her to eat!  Yeah, that would work.  So I began enthusiastically asking about her BINGO game I had seen her partaking in earlier in the evening.  That was met with more groans.  I asked about her family: more groaning.  I asked about her roommate, how long she'd been there, what she liked to do, anything to get the woman to acknowledge me and stop groaning.  Well, it sort of worked.  She stopped groaning.  In fact she stopped acknowledging me at all.  She just sat there with her head in her hands, ignoring her food.

     At this point I started to feel really bad for her.  I knew she needed to eat, but I knew she was probably getting sick of me flitting around her like an annoying fly, so I decided to quit beating around the bush and tackle the problem head-on.  That's when I asked if she wasn't feeling well, to which she replied that she wasn't.  I asked if she wanted to go lay down, and she said she did. That's when I offered a proposition: if she would eat a little bit I would help her to her room to rest.  I thought I had finally convinced her because she finally picked her head up and looked me in the eyes!  Then she said, "Would you just shut up?"  My classmate, who was sitting nearby feeding another patient, busted out laughing, as did the worker.  Not missing a beat I replied with a grin on my face, "I'll shut up if you eat for me."  (Yes, I was desperate at this point.)  To which, the patient simply put her head back in her hands and sighed.

     After my dismal failure with that particular patient, the worker rescued me, laughing that I would probably get hit if I kept trying to make her eat, and asked me to go feed another patient.  Something about the twinkle in her eye when she told me which patient I should feed next made me think I was being set up to fail again.  Then I saw my next patient.  She looked like she had led a rather rough life, and her wild eyes suggested she was a scrapper, so I knew I was in for it when I sat down next to her.  I introduced myself to her, and she looked at me like I was crazy when I offered to help feed her.  The guy across from us confirmed my fears about her when he said, "Now, don't go fighting this one, she's here to help you."  Great!  Well she couldn't communicate verbally, but I could tell right away by her body language the last thing she wanted to do was patronize me by eating that nasty-looking, foul-smelling, glorified baby food, but then I had another stroke of brilliance.  Eyeing the ice cream on her tray, I made her a deal:  eat your baby food, and I'll give you some ice cream.  Expecting the same reaction I had gotten from the previous patient, I was so relieved to see this patient break out into a huge grin and nod her head in agreement to my deal.  From then on out we were the best of friends, cracking up and laughing at each other, even when she threw her water across the table just for giggles.  Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

     Well now that you've sat through another silly story of mine, I'll share some lunch ideas :-)

Monday: Ballerina Bento Box

      This idea is straight out of Everyday Bento, which I love!  It has such cute ideas for be not boxes for your kids, and even a section about adult bentos.  The ballerina slippers come with a side of carrot sticks, cheese cubes, raisins, grape tomatoes, and cucumber "wands".

Tuesday: Sandwich on a Stick
(or if you're Jose Jalapeño, "Sandwich on a steek!")

     I don't know why, but every time I try to pack my daughter a simple ham sandwich, she won't eat it.  She complains that by the time she gets it at lunch the bread is soggy.  So, I decided to send her to school with these little "sandwich on a stick" kabobs, and she loved them!  She told me the bread wasn't soggy at all, which makes no sense to me, but whatever, she ate it.   Simply thread some bread cut into cubes, some ham rolled up, and some cubed cheese onto a skewer, and there you go.  I added some pickles (her favorite), some tomatoes and broccoli, half of a banana, and a bit of Ranch to dip her veggies in.  Typically I'm not big on Ranch for her veggies; I feel like it defeats the purpose of eating healthy veggies if you douse them in preservative-filled, saturated-fatty, creamy sauce, but she asked for it specifically, and I knew it would gather to eat more of her veggies than usual, so what the heck!

Wednesday: Princess Quesadillas

      This was a super simple lunch.  I made ham and cheese quesadillas for her that morning, and use cookie cutters to make the different shapes.  I cut some cucumbers into cute little hearts, added some grape tomatoes, and gave her half of an apple to go with it.  She ate all of this one too.

Thursday: Breakfast for Lunch

      I love breakfast for dinner.  We have that at least twice a month.  I like it because I typically have more time in the evening to make all the things I really wanted to eat for breakfast.  Plus, J's more awake, and more likely to help.  Well, this is the same basic concept.  I took a waffle, and cut it into strips for Monkey to dip in the syrup I provided (I only gave her a little bit, so her teacher wouldn't kill me for giving her a sugar rush at school).  I added some turkey bacon, a boiled egg, half of a banana, and some edamame.  Yes, the edamame has nothing to do with breakfast, but you know I like to throw a little green into her lunches.

Friday: Asian Chicken Salad

      This one is actually used some leftovers from the previous night's dinner of Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps from SkinnyTaste (recipe to follow).  I chopped up some lettuce, added the leftover chicken, and supplied the homemade Spicy Hoisin Dipping Sauce in these adorable little sauce holders to use as a dressing.  I then packed Monkey some crackers, tomatoes, and half of a banana as sides.  This was another one caused her to clean out her box, which makes Mommy happy :-)

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
1/4 cup dried shiitake mushrooms
1 TBS soy sauce, plus 1/4 tsp dark soy sauce (or more of the regular soy sauce)
1/2 tsp oyster sauce
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 TBS rice wine vinegar
1/2 tsp sugar
pepper to taste
8 oz boneless, skinless chicken thighs, ground
1/4 cup water chestnuts, chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 TBS diced scallions
6 iceberg lettuce leaves, rinsed

Spicy Hoisin Dipping Sauce
4 TBS Hoisin Sauce
1/2 tsp chili sauce (I use Sriracha)
1 TBS warm water

Place dried mushrooms in a bowl filled with hot water to soften a few minutes.  Remove stems and chop fine.  Set aside.

Combine soy sauce(s), oyster sauce, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, rice wine, sugar, and pepper in a separate bowl.

Combine ground chicken, mushrooms, and water chestnuts in a new bowl.  Add soy sauce mixture.  Mix and let marinate for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix ingredients for Spicy Hoisin Dipping sauce, and set aside.

Heat remaining oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat.  Add garlic, cook until fragrant, about 10 seconds.  Add chicken mixture, stir fry until brown, breaking chicken mixture up as it cooks, about 4-5 minutes.

Serve by spooning 1/4 cup of chicken into each leaf.  Top with scallions and hoisin sauce.

Enjoy :-)

Ghostly Encounter or Too Much Booze?

     I am currently enjoying a rather quiet day with my little Monkey.  J is currently doing his 4 hour watch, and that leaves just us girls.  I'm enjoying the leisurely silence after a busy few weeks.  J and I got back from our Anniversary trip to NOLA Saturday night, and hit the ground running.  I start school again tomorrow, so we've been trying to get everything done in preparation for that.  Then yesterday I threw together a little lunch to celebrate J's 25th birthday.  (I told him he's getting old.)  It went rather well, I think, and J seemed to be enjoying himself, so what else could I ask for?  Today I worked on cleaning up what little bit of mess there was left from yesterday's gathering, and attempting to avoid eating the remains of J's birthday cake.  That was going well, but then I got super excited when I saw we have Root beer and Vanilla Ice Cream.  Do you know what this means?  Root Beer Floats!!!  Oh, yeah, I'm earning that run tonight.

     Yesterday while talking with a few of my friends I got on the subject of our trip, and I mentioned the Ghost Tour we did, and of course I brought up my ghostly encounter.  Maybe "ghostly encounter" is the wrong wording, let's call it my "possible paranormal encounter".  So let me relate what happened.

     First, let me begin by recommending the Haunted History Tours to anyone who goes to New Orleans!  They're awesome.  It's not the kind where things jump out or scare you, but you hear a lot of interesting history and ghost lore about the city.  That night our guide, Wendy, brought us to several different haunted areas, including a haunted bar and encouraged us to take pictures, pointing out various locations that have captured images of the paranormal in the past, but I wasn't having much luck with my camera.  At the bar, I ordered a VooDoo daiquiri, as recommended by our tour guide.  Now, I don't drink, so a quarter of the drink is all I had to ingest in order to feel slightly buzzed before we headed off the the most haunted building in New Orleans, the LaLaurie Mansion.  I'm going to gloss over the gruesome details, but if you want the full story, check it out here.

    The tour group gathered on the streets outside the old LaLaurie mansion, and we listened carefully to our guide's tale about the place.  Madame LaLaurie was a well-to-do woman in the time of slaves.  She had been married twice before, and both of those husbands had died of "mysterious causes".  She was married again to her third husband, a surgeon who loved anything to do with organs and bodily functions.  Madame LaLaurie was known to give lavish parties, with no expenses spared.  She'd serve the most expensive hors d'oeuvres of the time.  She'd even go so far as to disappear for a while during these parties, and return in a brand new lavish gown, which ruffled a few feathers, but people still attended these gatherings for the free booze and food.

     One night there was a small fire in the kitchen during one of these parties, and the party-goers panicked, but Madame LaLaurie (who had done her disappearing act) returned to her guests in time to calm the fears and suggest they move the party to the streets.  All the guests obeyed, and the band set up in the streets to play as the firemen entered the home to put out the small kitchen fire.  What they found was the cook chained to the stove.  She had started the fire on purpose, and she begged the firemen to ignore her and "save the ones upstairs".  Under the pretense of searching for embers, the firemen raided the rest of the house, looking for these "others".  When they found a barred door hidden in one of the upstairs room, they were ill-prepared for what was inside.   Madame LaLaurie had slaves chained to operating tables and walls, all having undergone some form of experiment that cost most of them their lives.  Evidently, she had been using the noise from these parties to hide the screams, and she had to change into a new dress before returning to her guests to hide the blood on the first gown.  As the firemen began to remove the bodies of the poor slaves who hadn't survived, the people in the streets saw the grutesque bodies and a wave of shock, anger, and fear swept over the crowd.  Once they rallied themselves, they began to talk of attacking the house to bring Madame LaLaurie to justice, but just as they began to organize, the gates swung open, and a carriage flew out onto the street in a mad dash.  Madame LaLaurie escaped, and she was never seen again.

     As the tour guide was relaying this story, I was taking pictures of the building and sipping my daiquiri, but when she began to tell, in exquisite detail, the types of horrors in the room, I began to feel dizzy and light headed.  A wave of nausea hit me, like I was going to be sick.  I remember thinking, "Dear God, don't let me throw up in front of all these people."  I felt the world go black, starting in the corners of my eyes and working it's way to the middle to cover all my vision.  I knew I was walking, but I didn't feel anything until my knee hit the road, and I felt the curb rise up to meet my rump.  I was seated, but I neither heard nor saw any of it.  When the blackness swam away again, J was crouched over me, looking concerned.  He grabbed the drink from my hand, threw it away, and began to fan me.  I felt sick, weak, and dizzy.  I blamed the alcohol, because I never drink.  J put his arm around me and helped me to my feet.  I had to lean on him for the rest of the tour.  That night I barely slept.  The street car rumbled outside our hotel window.  I was miserably hot.  I couldn't get comfortable.  In the middle of the night I heard a woman scream, but I didn't dare open my eyes to look in fear of what I'd see.

    The next morning I felt foolish and tired for letting a ghost story scare me so, and I still said it was the booze that made me feel so faint, but later that afternoon I googled the story to fill in the parts I had missed during my black out.  I was still laughing at my own silliness, until an article made me freeze.  Apparently 100s of people over the years have fainted during the retelling of the horrors in the LaLaurie mansion.  It's the only spot in the tour that is required to be shown, so the guides always gather the groups in the same spot outside where the party guest had stood, and they say that the people who faint are actually reliving the shock, fear, and anger the party goers felt at seeing the atrocities that came out of the house that night.  Imagine how you would feel, if during a party one of your host's servants was wheeled past you on a stretcher, with both her arms and both her legs cut off.  Was that what I had felt the night before?

     So I'll leave it to you to decide.  Did I encounter the residual feeling of shock that had been imprinted on the streets outside the LaLaurie mansion that night so long ago, or was a quarter of a daiquiri really too much for me to take?

    Now, for those of you who still have an appetite after a story like that, what's wrong with you?  Just kidding.  Here you go:

Teriyaki Glazed Chicken from The Best of Country Cooking

 Teriyaki Glazed Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into strips
3 TBS vegetable oil, divided
4 medium carrots, julienned
1 medium onion, julienned
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
Hot cooked rice
Sesame seeds, toasted, optional
Sliced green onions, optional

In a large skillet or wok, stir-fry chicken in 2 TBS oil for 6-8 minutes, or until juices run clear.  Remove chicken and set aside.  In the same skillet, stir-fry carrots in remaining oil for 2 minutes.  Add onion; stir-fry about 2-4 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender.  Combine soy sauce and brown sugar; add to skillet.  Bring to boil.  Return chicken to skillet.  Boil for 5 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened.  Serve over rice.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds and green onions.

Enjoy!

 

I've Got This

    I have one final class at 1:00, and then I am home free for two whole days!!!  This week was like running a mental marathon.  With four tests to study for, two stinky dogs that needed baths, a three-year-old with all her needs and wants, and a house that doesn't clean itself, I found myself passing out each night exhausted.  I began wishing my husband were here to help, but then I remembered the amount of dishes and laundry that come with him, and I began to be grateful that he's not around, so that I have one less person to take care of and pick up after (horrible, right?).  Oh, well.  I survived this week, and I've managed to do so without completely losing my sanity.  I only cried myself to sleep one night this week, but that was totally justified because I had just found out that I had sewn the collar on a shirt wrong for the 3rd time in a row!  Needless to say I'm ready for the weekend.
 
     If nothing else, this week  this month this deployment has taught me that I am stronger than I ever thought possible.  Not just all the running and working out I've been doing, but all the schooling, all the studying, all the "but Mommy, I want you to play with me"s, all the "Mommy, I need"s,  and even the emergency room visit have taught me that I can do this.  I can take on this crazy, hectic, beautiful life that doesn't make sense, and I can make it my own.  I can mold it into something that reflects who I am and what I want, and I can do it without anyone's help.  I am capable.  I am strong.  I am me; I am the best me I can be, and I am getting better every day.

    This weekend I look forward to sleeping past 6:00 am, cooking breakfast for my daughter, and taking her to see Finding Nemo in 3D.  Tonight her two friends are coming for a visit, and I know she'll be thrilled to see them again.  You know, the more I find myself and strive to make myself better, the more I see her in a new light.  It might just be her age, but her little personality has grown so much, and I love it!  She's sassy, smart, clever, strong-willed, happy, and funny.  I really think she's a redhead masquerading as a brunette.  She has a quick temper, and a loud mouth.  She's sweet and loving.  She's tough, tougher than I ever was.  She doesn't let anyone or anything slow her down, and she knows what she wants, and she demands it.  She's a whole lot of personality stuffed into that little body, so it's no wonder that she's always bursting with energy.  Words can't even describe how proud I am that she is my child.

   You know, I don't even know where I was going with this post.  I don't know how this ties in with my recipe, but here it is anyway.  This recipe has been floating around Pinterest for a while now, and I had to try it.  I'm so glad I did, because it was as yummy as it looked.  Here is it:

Sweet and Sour Chicken 

Chicken:

3-4 boneless chicken breasts

salt + pepper

1 cup cornstarch

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup canola oil

Sweet and Sour Sauce:

3/4 cup sugar

4 tbs ketchup

1/2 cup distilled white vinegar

1 tbs soy sauce

1 tsp garlic salt

       Start by preheating your oven to 325 degrees. Rinse your chicken breasts in water; cut into cubes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Dip chicken into the cornstarch to coat then dip into the eggs.  Heat  1/4 cup oil in a large skillet and cook chicken until browned but not cooked through. Place chicken in a 9x13 greased baking dish. Mix all of the sweet and sour sauce ingredients in a bowl with a whisk. Pour evenly over the chicken. Bake for one hour, turning chicken every 15 minutes.

Ta-da!

Seriously, the original poster is a genius!  This stuff is amazing, and she even posted a Fried Rice recipe to go with it.

You'll need:

3 cups cooked white rice (day old or leftover rice works best!)

3 tbs sesame oil

1 cup frozen peas and carrots (thawed)

1 small onion, chopped

2 tsp minced garlic

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1/4 cup soy sauce

      On medium high heat, heat the oil in a large skillet or wok.  Add the peas/carrots mix, onion and garlic. Stir fry until tender. Lower the heat to medium low and push the mixture off to one side, then pour eggs on the other side of the skillet and stir fry until scrambled. Add the rice and soy sauce and blend well. Stir fry until thoroughly heated.

Yum!

A Little Bit of Everything

     I know I've been MIA again, and I'm sorry, but it's not my fault.  The blame can be equally attributed to JK Rowling and Stephen King.  I read The Stand this past week, and it has found its way into my top ten favorite books off all time.  I have found myself truly enjoying King's way of spinning a yarn.  Before I read any of his novels, I expected gore and violence and scary themes that would keep me up all hours of the night.  What I got was much better, and much more thrilling.  I think the best parts of King's novels are the ones that deal with the human mind, and the moral struggles that go on there.  He has a way of scaring you, not with the boogyman, but with the guy next door.   The Stand was no different.  For me, especially, the idea of a military-made weapon being the catalyst that sparked the whole end-of-the-world battle was quite frightening.


     Of course, once I finished the novel, I just had to watch the movie.  That ended up being a three-night affair.  Having a job really puts an end to all that late-night partying.  When I finally did see the movie in it's entirety, I was rather impressed (even in spite of the 80s graphics).


    Last night I got on this computer fully intending to write a new blog, but first I checked my email.....and then I forgot all about my blog.  I got in to the early stages of Pottermore, so last night I was reliving another book from my top ten list, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.  They haven't opened up any of the other books for exploration yet, but I'm waiting patiently.  I like this testing-out phase because I can put in my two-cents in the hopes that it will make the experience better for the ones that are allowed in when October rolls around.  I'm also enjoying the extra tid-bits Rowling is including in the site.  These are bits that didn't make it into the book or back story on certain characters.  So far my favorite part of the whole experience has been reading Professor McGonagall's back-story.  She was my favorite professor in the books, so it's nice to learn a bit more about her.


   So enough with the excuses, let's get down to it.  I may not have been blogging, but I have been cooking.  I have two cheap and quick meals that I want to share with y'all tonight.  The first one is a bit different, and it may not sound that great, but it was really yummy.  The second is a bit of a staple in the south, but I've never used such a quick version.


  First, I made Tomato and Egg Stir-fry.

  I found this on foodgawker, but to be honest I didn't even read the guy's blog about it.  I simply watched this video and followed her instructions.  It was pretty tasty.  J ate a bunch, and Monkey approved.


What you need:
3 eggs
3 tomatoes
2 TBS oil
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
Cooked white rice


   Crack eggs into a bowl and beat.  Cut tomatoes into quarter pieces. Heat oil in skillet/wok, add egg first.  (Do not scramble)  Let sit until eggs are about half cooked, then cut up into small pieces.  Push the eggs to one side, then add tomatoes.  Add salt to tomatoes.  Add sugar to tomatoes.  Cover with lid.  Simmer for about 1 minute over med-high.  Stir eggs and tomatoes together.  Serve over cooked white rice.


   Next up I made something called Hoppin' John.  

   I've cooked beans on several occasions, usually soaking them over night, then using my slow cooker all day.  This was a nice change.


What you need:


1 TBS olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 15-oz. cans black eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chicken stock
Salt and pepper
2 TBS chopped parsley
2 green onions, chopped
1 large tomato, seeded and diced
cooked white rice


  Heat olive oil in skillet over med-high heat.  Add onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic.  Cook until veggies are tender and onions are translucent.  Add black-eyed peas, stock, salt and pepper.  Cook for 10 minutes.  Add parsley.  Serve over rice.  Top with tomato and green onions. 

   Both Monkey and J had seconds on this one.  J even asked when I was going to make it again.  I think I'll add it to my shopping list for next week's groceries.  


   On a completely unrelated note, those of you who are my Facebook friend already know that my darling J has been quite the over-acheiver lately.  He made breakfast for Monkey and I both Saturday and Sunday.  He's been doing the laundry, washing the dishes, and over all making me wonder who this impostor is.  Monday he even stayed home with Monkey while I was at work.  


   Monkey had been sick and running fever on Sunday, so Monday morning J called to make an appointment with her pediatrician.  By this point she was no longer running fever, but mommy said we'd better play it safe, and daddy agreed.    My darling J brought her to her appointment at 10:50, and he found out that it was indeed, nothing.  Then he gets ready to bring her to daycare only to remember that the daycare's policy states that no child can be dropped off between 10:30 and 1:00 because that's lunch and nap time.  He has a muster to get to, so what does he do?  Bring Monkey with him.  At muster, he's informed that everyone is required to go to medical to get a flu mist.  So he and Monkey end up back in the waiting room.  For anyone who has a toddler or has ever watched a toddler for more than ten minutes, you know that their tolerance for waiting patiently is slim to none.  Finally around 12:45 someone, either feeling sorry for my husband or getting sick of my kid, suggests that he try to call the daycare to see if they'll make an exception.  Come to find out, that 10:30-1:00 rule doesn't apply if you had a doctor's appointment that day.  My husband is so relieved he rushes Monkey right over there.  When they walk in her classroom most of the kids are already laying down for their naps.  J explains to Monkey that she needs to be as quiet as she can, so she won't wake them up.  After that and a kiss, J leaves.  


     He returns to medical to wait in line for his flu mist.  When he gets inside medical he sees his buddy and falls in line with him to chit-chat.  Next thing he knows he's at the front of the line, has his mist finished, and is free to leave all in the record time of five minutes.  Most people would probably have just given up and gone off to enjoy a bit of free time.  After all, we are paying this daycare whether she goes or not, so he might as well get his money's worth right?  Nope.  Not my husband.  He marches himself right back over there and picks up our baby girl and brings her home.  When he got in the room, she was laying on her pallet.  He walks over to her and taps her on the shoulder and says, "Hey baby girl, you want to go home?"  She rolls over, puts her finger to her lips, and says "Shh, Daddy.  The kids are sleeping.  Have to be quiet."  At least he knows she listens to him.


    That day I got home from work to the most stressed out husband, the messiest house, and the happiest Monkey I've ever seen.  I think it's so cute to watch him fumble along, learning everything in a few weeks that I've had two and a half years to figure out.  He's doing a pretty darn good job of it too, if you ask me.

   Best quote of the week:
   J:  "I feel like I'm living in that song 'and it's only Monday Mr. Mom....'

Never Wrestle with Two Dogs in a Parking Lot

   Well today was quite eventful.  I had a job interview this morning at a credit union, and although I feel it went well, I won't have a definite answer for about 2-3 weeks.  So breathe easy people!  There will be nothing standing in between me and my daily posts about yummy recipes and the randomness that is my life ;-)  Not until my husband comes home, at any rate, but then again I may need this blog to get away from him after the initial "honeymoon" period is over.  That should last all of......the car ride home o.O

   In the mean time, I do have a yummy recipe for y'all tonight, but first let me fill you in on a few more fun facts about my day.  After the job interview, I picked Monkey up from the daycare, and we headed off in search of groceries.  I don't quite know what had me so frazzled, but I swear I went up and down each isle twice because I passed up what I needed the first time.  Then I finally get to the check-out line, and I can't find my coupons.  They were in my wallet.   Of course, I couldn't find them!!!  I mean, who puts their coupons in their wallet???  I usually have them pinned to my list.  Well then, I forgot to get cash back whenever I paid, so I was scrambling to gather up all of my quarters so that I had a tip for the sweet old gentleman who followed me out into the crazy heat to load up my groceries.  Then I couldn't find my keys.  They were in my purse!  That is NOT where they belong!!!  They are supposed to be hooked onto the side of my purse.  (And, yes, there is a difference.)

   I finally made it home, fed the monkey, and put the groceries away.  Then it was time to take Roux to the vet.  I don't think I've mentioned this before but my aptly nick-named "mangy mutt", does in fact have mange.  It's not the contagious kind, but she's looking all too scraggly with those two dozen furless patches all down her back.  She's been on the medicine for two weeks now, and my instructions were to bring her back today.  Since Tessua started her new job yesterday (yay!) she asked if I could bring her newest addition (remember when we vowed not to let each other get a pet?) to the vet for a booster.  Figuring that two dogs couldn't be that much harder than one, I agreed.

   So off we went, Monkey, Roux and I, to pick up Athena.  After collecting her we headed to the vet, and halfway there someone started stinking up my car!  "Athena!!!!" I yelled, as I hurried to roll down her window.  The rest of the trip there was a fun game of "roll the window down before I gag, and roll the window up before we all break out into a sweat".  Finally we get to the vet's office (the one in PetSmart), and I load Roux and Ryleigh into a buggy like always.  Then I toss Athena's stinky self in there too, and we head off.  Well Athena, being the ringleader that she is, decided she did not like the buggy.  Out she hopped while I was pushing the buggy past a truck who obviously was not paying attention to where he was backing up!  I had to hurry up and catch her leash, all while maneuvering my child and mutt out of the way of the idiot driver.  Then my darling Roux, who never has an original thought, and is always behind the times, finally realizes that "Hey, I can jump out of here too".  Out she hops too.  Thankfully I still had her leash in my hand.

   Somehow I manage to wrestle the two mutts into PetSmart, not without a few giggles from passersby, and I explain to the lady that I have my dog, and a friend's dog, and she's looking extremely confused. "Is your friend going to be here for the exam?"  "Um, no; that's why I just single-handedly wrestled two dogs in the middle of your parking lot!" (Okay, I didn't really say that, but my snarky side wanted to.)  Still looking a little put out, the lady finally weighed them both, and then we waited.  And waited.   And waited.   Meanwhile I'm getting dirty looks every time Athena lets one rip, because apparently the smell is invading everyone's nostrils, and they all think it's me.  Finally, it's our turn.  We get into the room and away from the staring people who are judging me for my non-exsistent gas, and the nurse can't seem to figure out why I've brought in my dog who's only been on the mange medicine for two weeks.  Go figure, the vet we saw last time was not in today, and evidently this other vet had no clue why the original vet told me to come in, and I'm just standing there going "WTH did I just drag two dogs here for?"  So then they take Athena and give her her shot and get her heartworm meds.  Then they come back to explain to me that they typically don't re-check for mange until the medicine has been administered for a month.  So basically, I need to keep up with the exact same crap I've been doing.  So then we get out, and it's time to pay. Then we leave, and I'm told to bring them both back in two-three weeks, and I'm thinking "yeah, cause that's gonna happen".

   We get back to Tessua's house, I put Athena and the meds up, and get back into my car to head home. I'm halfway home when Roux lets one out, and I just glare at her.  So I'm sorry Tessua, for judging your dog for her non-exsistent gas.  Lesson learned....

  So I hope you've all had a good laugh at my expense.  If not, would it help to tell you that the whole time I was wrestling the two mutts I was in a frieakin' dress???  I thought it might.

  So on to better things.  Like food.

  Tonight I attempted to make Beef and Broccoli, and let me just say that it was a total success.  I got the recipe from here. I really like this blog, and I plan to try a few more of her recipes soon.

Beef and Broccoli


1 lb boneless beef sirloin steak
4 T cornstarch
28 oz beef broth
5 t soy sauce
2 T brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 c fresh broccoli florets
Cooked white rice


  Slice beef into small strips.  In a medium bowl mix cornstarch, broth, soy sauce, brown sugar, and garlic.  In large skillet, brown beef over medium heat.  Add broccoli and broth mixture.  Stirring frequently, bring to a boil, and boil until it thickens.  


  Simple yet delicious.  Monkey even asked for seconds (not a rare occurrence, but note-worthy).  If I would change anything, it *might* be to add more soy sauce, but I'm a bit of a soy addict.  (And for those of you worrying about my sodium levels, need I remind you about my theory on what women eat???)  


   Oh, and here's a few drool-worthy pictures that I'm rather proud of.