Bedtime Blues

   
     According to the diagram, y'all, my darling J is the wife.  Every night when Monkey gets up at an ungodly hour to wake me up for water or a potty break or a hug, J, without even stirring from his lovely sanctuary of slumber, wriggles his way onto my side the bed, and every night I have to finagle my way back into the bed.  Last night was the worst, however.  After tucking Monkey back in after a nightmare about a dragon, I came back to bed to see J on my side of the bed again.  I quietly asked him to get back to his side, and he complied...sort of.  He moved his head back to his pillow, but the rest of him was still on my side.  I gently began prodding him to scoot over, and he responded by grunting and rolling over.  This should have been the end of it, but for some unknown reason he decided it would be most comfortable to sleep with his head and knees on his side of the bed while his rump rested on my side.  I don't even fathom how the man accomplished the feat of taking up the entire bed with just his butt considering baby ain't got much back.  He did it, however, by channeling his inner Will Smith (think Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), and pushed that hinny all the way to the edge.  I was forced to mold myself to the odd V shape in order to pass out for 45 minutes before my alarm to run woke me up.  Thankfully it was raining, so I had a legitimate excuse to stay in the (somewhat) cozy bed.

     I was already sleepy from the restless night, but now I'm exhausted.  J and I decided that in order to spend time together and still have time to get to the gym, we'd start a workout together.  I foolishly let J pick it out, and blindly followed him to the gym.  My reward?  The loss of all feeling in both arms.  That is, until the numbness subsided and was replaced by a burning sensation any time I move them.  I think it's safe to say the workout he chose is effective, if not painful.  It's nice to be able to do something constructive together, though.

     Tonight I probably negated everything we did at the gym with these awesome pan pizzas:

but it was totally worth it.

     The original poster said that these were just like the ones you can get from Pizza Hut, but I can't confirm that, as I've never tasted their pan pizza.  J has, however, and he says that these are even better. This is the first time I've made my own crust.  It turned out to be way easier than I thought it would be.

"Pizza Hut" Pan Pizzas

For the dough:
1/4 cup non-fat dry milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 TBS sugar
1 package dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
1 1/3 cup warm water
2 TBS oil (I used canola) + extra for greasing pans
4 cups flour

Mix yeast, sugar, salt, and dry milk in a 2 qt bowl.  Add water and stir, mixing well.  Allow to sit for 2 minutes.  Stir in oil.  Add flour and mix until dough forms.  Turn dough out onto a lightly flour surface, and knead for 10 minutes.  Divide dough into 3 balls.  In three 9" round cake pans, grease with oil, making sure it's spread evenly.  Using a rolling pan, roll out each ball into a 9" circle.  Place one in each pan.  Cover with a plate, and allow to rise in a warm location for about 1 1/2 hours.  (I usually stick mine in the oven, but make sure it's off lol)

For the sauce:
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 tsp dry oregano
1/2 tsp marjoram (I substituted dry thyme b/c I couldn't find this)
1/2 tsp dry basil
1/2 tsp garlic salt

Combine in a small bowl and let sit for about an hour.

To assemble the pizzas, spoon about 1/3 cup of sauce onto each pizza.  Add a little cheese, then your meat toppings followed by any additional toppings before adding the rest of the cheese on top.  Bake at 475 for 10-15 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling and the crust is browned.

     The best part was that we each had our own pizza to top with whatever we chose.  Plus, Monkey   got to assemble hers on her own.

   Well I hope y'all enjoy the rest of your evening.  Here's hoping I can get a full night's sleep tonight, but if Monkey does wake me up, I'm going to skip the middle man by letting her sleep next to her daddy while I steal her bed.

Sisters

   My sister and I have always been toeing the line between polar opposites and kindred spirits.  She is a fiery, independent, quick-tempered, protective person with ambitions and goals that she fights for with all her might.  I'm a laid-back, go-with-the-flow type who keeps her mouth shut unless it's really important; a person who sets goals, but often exchanges them for something else.  My sister is an Aries; I'm a Cancer.  She's short; I'm tall.  She's a redhead (with all the characteristics that word brings to mind), and I'm a brunette (with most of the mediocrity that word drums up).  But when you scrape away a couple of the outer layers you find that we're not so different after all. We both have open minds with Christian morals.  We share a love of Jane Austen, sushi, and pickled okra that transcends your everyday liking.  We share a language, a form of expressing ourselves through the written word.  Most of all, we share a common past.

   Although we have younger siblings, my sister an I are the only ones that share that "growing up together" experience.  With our younger siblings, being so much younger than us, we were limited in the amount of time we actually spent at home together.  This doesn't mean we love either of them any less, it simply means my older sister and I share our childhood in a way that's just ours.  These days, with J being gone, and Monkey and I living in another state, I've grown to see how much my sister means to me.  Growing up we fought like cats and dogs (as is expected from two girls sharing one bathroom), but now that we're older, married and raising our children, I find myself able to relate to my sister in ways I never did.  We're almost on the same level.  We are at about the same place in life with our families, which makes it easier for us to talk and share and be open with one another.

   I was thinking today of how Monkey is an only child, and I can't help but hope that one day she has a sister of her own.  I can't imagine how lonely I'd be right now without my sister, or my brother, or my younger sister.  I think of Monkey getting older, and I imagine a time when her father and I won't be here any more, and it would be sad to leave this world knowing that she had no one to fully understand who she is or where she came from.  I know how close friends can get to being like sisters, but there's still something about having someone there who was with you, who grew up with you, who watched you fall and get back up, and who saw you become the person you are now that makes them close to you in a way that someone who doesn't know your story could never be.

   What prompted this deep reverie of pondering, you ask?  Pizza.  Simple as it sounds, my sister's blog post about pizza made me travel down this path of nostalgia.  Here's why:  This morning Monkey and I went to the Comissary to load up on our two weeks worth of groceries, and on the way home I was thinking about how excited I was to try a new pizza recipe I found so I could share it with y'all tonight.  When I got home from the store, I checked Facebook, and what do I see?  My sister had made a pizza and blogged about it!  It's just one of those quirky things, like when you buy the same shirt even though you weren't shopping together.  Or when you say the same thing at the same time.  Just that moment of connection.  That's what started it all, so blame the pizza for this bit of rambling you have to scroll through to actually get the recipe.

So here it is:

 Chicken Alfredo Pizza
Here's what you'll need:

3/4 lb chicken breast
Black pepper and salt to taste
2 TBS butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 TBS all purpose flour
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
16 oz pizza dough (I used Pillsbury's)
2 cups baby spinach, rinsed and dried
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 cup mozzarella
2 TBS olive oil

Preheat oven to 375.  Place chicken in a Ziploc with half of the garlic, salt and pepper.  Let marinate for 15 minutes.  Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, add chicken breasts and cook 4-5 minutes per side or until cooked through.

Remove from skillet, and cut into little chunks.  Set aside.  Melt butter in a saucepan over med-high heat.  Add remaining garlic and red pepper flakes, saute for a minute or two.

Add flour, cook slightly, but don't let it brown.  Add cream, and cook, stirring, until sauce is thickened.

 Remove sauce from heat, and stir in Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste.  Line a 13" baking sheet (or pizza stone if you have one) with parchment paper, and then roll dough onto the sheet.  Spread the sauce over the dough.

Top with spinach,

Monkey loves helping me make pizza!

tomatoes,

 and chicken.

Add mozzarella.  Cook for 25 minutes or until dough is golden brown.

Enjoy!


Oh, and just for fun.  Here's a clip from one of my sister's and my favorite movies:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GE589gkOYz0

Pizza and Beer, Butterbeer that is....

    As I'm sure most of you read, I drowned my precious computer late last week while attempting to wash dishes and surf Pinterest simultaneously.  It obviously doesn't pay to multi-task.  The consequence for my folly is that I'm now typing on my husband's PC (yes I realize I'm running the risk of starting a PC vs MAC debate).  Don't get me wrong, I really don't care about the difference between a PC and a MAC, but since they are so different, I can see why people pick one side and stick to it.  I prefer my Mac simply because I find it easier.  That's just my opinion on the matter.  I don't need to hear yours :-P  That's why I'm the blogger, and you're the follower :-D

    Now that y'all have just discovered the true reason behind my blog, I think it's time I share what I've been up to since I put my poor Mac out of commission.  Of course, I have a few recipes I can't wait to share
:-)

    I was in a pizza mood this past week, so I made two versions of it.  Both came from Paula Deen's September/October 2011 issue, and both were very scrumptious.  The first was a Philly Cheesesteak Pizza.

You'll need:

1 (16 oz) pkg refrigerated pizza crust dough (or do what I do and buy a pkg of prebaked pizza crusts, they come two to a pack, so you can make both of these pizzas)
1 lb extra-lean ground beef
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
2 TBSP spicy brown mustard
8 slices provolone cheese
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese
1 tsp Montreal steak seasoning

If you're using the refrigerated dough for the crust:
Let pizza dough rest according to package directions.  Preheat oven to 450.  Press dough into a 16" pizza pan or a rimmed baking sheet.  Bake for five minutes.

If you bought a prepared pizza crust your directions start here:
In a large skillet combine beef, bell peppers, and onion.  Cook over medium heat for 8 minutes or until beef is browned and crumbly and veggies are tender.  Drain well.
Spread mustard over pizza crust.  Top with provolone cheese, beef mixture, and mozzarella cheese.  Sprinkle with steak seasoning.  Bake for 8 minutes or until crust is browned and cheese melts.  Cut into wedges, and enjoy!

The Philly Cheesesteak Pizza was J's favorite.  Mine however was this next one.  It's a Chicken Club Pizza, and it's phenomenal!

What you'll need:
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup ranch dressing
1 prebaked pizza crust
1 cup shredded rotisserie chicken (or leftovers from last night's bbq, or whatever)
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 avocado, sliced
1 cup tomato
2/3 shredded lettuce

Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and ranch dressing until well combined.  Place pizza crust on a baking sheet, and spread with cream cheese mixture (I would recommend using only 1/2-3/4 of the ranch mixture; I used all of it, and I was scraping cream cheese off as I ate.)  Sprinkle chicken and bacon over pizza.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Top with lettuce, tomatoes, and avocado slices.  Enjoy!

   I really think this was Monkey's favorite as well.  She liked both better than normal pizza, but she's her mama's child when it comes to her love of avocado!

  Soooooo, a friend of mine is slightly obsessed with Harry Potter, and by slightly, I mean she-who-must-not-be-named quotes it all the time.  Fortunately, I'm a pretty big Harry Potter fan myself, so I totally understand.  Sometimes I'm the only one who catches her quotes, but that's cool, because that means I can text her about awesome HP-related things I find.  The other night, I invited her over for dinner, and she was overjoyed when I pulled out the butterbeer recipe I have been dying to try.  I'm too lazy to type out another recipe so you can click here.  We both enjoyed it, although I did find it to be a bit too much.  I don't think it was too sweet, I think it was too buttery.  I may try it again with less butter, but for your viewing pleasure, here are a couple shots of the yummy concoction:

   And since I don't know how long it will be before my husband lets me take over his computer again (especially after he sees that I ragged it in this post), I'll give y'all one more for the road. It's a butterbeer latte, and theis was hands-down yummy!  I wouldn't change a thing about it, and if I could make myself wake up on time for a change I'd make it every morning.

I found the recipe on Pinterest, but I can't find the original post, so here's the photo:

   Now that you're probably sick of me again, I'm signing off  :-)  Here's hoping my amazing brother-in-law can save my poor computer before I get used to this stupid PC and have to relearn my Macbook all over again.  Nighty night all!

Shake Ya Tail Feather

     Ho hum, what to blog about tonight?

     This weekend was rather tame.  I was at home mostly, but I did end up going Halloween shopping both yesterday and today.  Yesterday my co-hostess and I went to WalMart to buy a few more things for our upcoming party.  I decided in July or August that I wanted to do a Halloween party, and I don't think I could have asked anyone better to help me hostess.  Amanda is probably just as crazy about Halloween as I am, if not more so, so it's all coming together very nicely.  Today J, Monkey, and I went to Party City to get costumes.  I had to order Monkey's online because she wants to be Ariel, and most of the Ariel costumes don't even look like the mermaid.  I've been feeling the 80s this year, so I went ahead and bought a Cindy Lauper style wig and a few 80s accessories.  There was a pair of leg warmers and a reversible pettiskirt I am definitely going back for next weekend.  J decided on a scary costume that they didn't have in the store, so we'll have to order it later.

     I can't wait until October!  It's the first of a string of wonderful events for my family.  My grandparents who live in Florida are traveling to visit in the middle of October.  My godson will be turning one shortly thereafter.  Our Halloween Bash will be the weekend before the actual holiday, and then there's Halloween itself.  Not to mention November, which will contain the Reba concert and Disney trip that I'm so pumped about.  Then of course comes December!!!  I'm so excited about all the things to come.

    If there were anything for the Suzy Sunshine wanna-be to complain about it would be the lack of cool weather, but here's hoping the next month will bring it on.  Fall is my favorite time of year.  I love the weather, the imminent holidays, and the family  get-togethers that usually accompany the start of football season.

   Although the weekend has been rather tame, there is one thing I have to add before I move on to the recipes.  Yesterday, Monkey was looking a bit too bored, so I decided to pull out my ill-used Zumba DVD.  She loves "dancing" with Mommy.  Although it's sad to admit, I hadn't done my Zumba exercises  since before my husband came home.  That means he's never witnessed this workout routine, and I had hoped to keep it that way.  I'm glad I didn't though, because for some unknown reason, he decided that 20 minutes of watching were enough, so he wanted to join in.  What followed were some of the most uncoordinated moves I have ever seen in my live.  It was so cute, because he was honestly trying to keep up, but he just has no rhythm.   Then just to have a little fun, I constantly remind him to "put your hips into it!"  That would lead to a few jerky moves somewhere in the general vicinity of his hips, and then he's be off step again and just struggling to keep up.  I don't think my sides are this sore today from the workout.  I think all that laughing did that to me.

    After a struggle like that I had to reward him somehow, so of course, I did it with food :-)  He loved this recipe, and Monkey did too, so it will be made again.  Oh, and this goes with out saying, but I found the recipe on Pinterest.

Pizza Pasta

1 (16 oz) bag pepperonis
2 jars spaghetti sauce *You can use pizza sauce if you prefer.
16 oz shredded Italian cheese blend
1 lb Italian sausage, cooked and crumbled
1 (16 oz) pkg rotini (spiral) pasta, cooked

Preheat the oven to 350.  Lightly grease a 9x13" baking dish.  In large bowl mix sausage, sauce, half of pepperonis, pasta, and a handful of the cheese.  Pour mixture into baking dish.  Top with remaining pepperoni.  Sprinkle all but about a handful of cheese over the top.  Cover loosely with foil, and bake for 20 minutes.  Remove aluminum foil, and bake 10 more minutes.  Top with remaining cheese.  Enjoy!

    As I've been typing, I've been supervising Monkey's playtime in her room.  She has a little Ariel doll and a dollhouse.  The two are not meant to go together, as Ariel is about as tall as the house, but Monkey's two so anything goes.  As I'm watching she repeatedly has Ariel walk through the front door, go upstairs, jump out the window, and then get up and do it all over again.  J is watching too, and his concern is that Ariel will hurt herself before she learns her lesson. I point out that Ariel doesn't have legs, she has a tail, so maybe there aren't any bones that can be broken.  He's worried she's going to break her tail feather.  I think I'm going to leave that comment alone and call it a night.