Is it Wednesday?

So yesterday was my lazy, bump-on-a-log day. All I did yesterday was make breakfast, lunch and shower. Yesterday evening I did have human contact as I went to my parents to have dinner and play with the nephew and niece. I think you need to have a boring day when unemployed to get it out of your system. Have a day you do nothing because there is nothing to do. I truly couldn't drive anywhere (I'm seeing how many days I can keep that "you need gas" light on before filling up) and I didn't have any money for shopping and I had no one to visit. My apartment didn't really need cleaned and I couldn't pack or decorate for Christmas. So...I was a bump on a log..er my couch. Although right now since the wedding has been postponed I could decorate for Christmas...but it's not fun anymore doing it by myself. You have to take it all out, put it all up and in a month I'll have to take it all down and pack it back up. "Ain't no one got time for that!".

So today was 100% more productive then yesterday. Given, I didn't get up until later but I made myself go to the local college and walk the track. My goal was to do one mile walking which on their small track is 10 laps. That was my goal but somewhere between leaving home and lap 4 I was inspired to run. Mostly inspired by my fiance whose become quite the runner lately (6.5miles in one shot..really??) Anyway, by the time I left the college it was 2 miles later and 7 laps of that was running. I'm going to pay for it tomorrow when I go to pee and my thighs burn like fire. I credit my jumping jacks addiction for the increased endurance I've received. 200 jumping jacks a night - get on it! Also, dinner tonight is highly caloric so it's good that I ran some.

BBQ chicken (in the crock pot), fried potatoes (in the cast iron) and homemade bread (in my antique Glasbake dishes). Ok, the BBQ chicken is in a BBQ/honey mustard/brown sugar sauce. It smells like Chick-fil-a and my stomach has been growling for an hour. The fried potatoes are some potatoes that I froze a few weeks ago. I really pray I froze them correctly (cut,boil,blanch,drain,freeze) because I need the practice for when I'm married to 1. save money 2. make potatoes last longer 3. keep from peeling potatoes everytime he wants them fried up. He's a real meat and potatoes - southern food lover of a man.

Speaking of saving money I'm making homemade bread using this recipe. It sounded so easy and makes  two loaves. So I will eat some tonight and tomorrow for toast but I will freeze the rest. Do you have any idea how much bread I waste because I simply don't eat it all? Yeah it's ridiculous. Yes it's only $1 a loaf but still.

So there is my day and my evening. I think I'll put on White Christmas while I make dinner. "Snooooow!"

Black Friday Baking

Black Friday. A day where - as the pin says - "days after giving thanks for things we're grateful for do we rush out to stores and trample people for the best deal" or something like that. I've done the black Friday thing twice in my life. The first time it was sleeting rain/snow and I wasn't wearing proper gear. The second time went better but we waited in line for an hour just to check out a few items. My parents are die hard black Friday fans but not me... I'd rather stay in my warm bed at 4am then get up and face crowds of anxious, cranky people.

This black Friday I decided to stay home all day and relax. After a fun, full day yesterday of food and family I wanted to just relax today. I decided yesterday that I was not to eat turkey leftovers but instead I'd make crock pot chicken enchilada soup. This is also called chicken tortilla soup. This recipe is similar but not the one I used. I luckily found mine on google but did not save it. So mine was thrown together without measurements. The measurements below are a rough guess as to what I did.

Chicken Tortilla Soup - for one
Ingredients
1 boneless skinless chicken breast (frozen)
1 cup of black beans rinsed and drained *omitted*
1 cup of frozen corn *omitted*
1 cup of mild salsa
1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 Tbsp garlic salt
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp curry powder

Toppings
Tortilla chips (the ones with the hint of lime are the best!)
Sour cream
Shredded cheddar cheese or mozzarella
Fresh Cilantro
White Rice

Throw all the ingredients in a small 4qt crock pot and set it on low for 5 hours. When the chicken is cooked pull it out and shred it. I use the "two forks" method. Before you add the chicken back in I added some freshly shredded mozzarella. Mixed it until it melted and I also added a hint of sour cream to get it creamier. I also at this point fished through to take out the chunks of tomatoes. Then let it cook for another hour or less as you feel fit. 

I made some rice in the microwave to add to it and give it some oomph. Most recipes don't call for this but all enchiladas I have had have rice in them. Scoop it all in a bowl and enjoy!

I was also craving chocolate chip cookies tonight but it's so hard to find a good recipe. My mother has passed her genes to me and neither of us has ever nailed a good chocolate chip cookie recipe. The common thing with each recipe is they make at least two dozen cookies. I didn't want two dozen I simply wanted something to nosh on and fulfill my craving. I came upon this recipe for Chocolate chip cookies for two and I was sold. The recipe said it would make one dozen but I got eight out of it. They were the perfect little cookie to satisfy my chocolate sweet tooth. This was also my first time baking with shortening and I must say - it's a whole lot easier then butter! 

Well folks that's two blogs in one day - I MUST be bored. Word on the street is snow is moving into the area - time to break out the warm and fuzzy recipes!

Bake on!

Baked up

Whew I officially stink at blogging. Here are some things I've been up to the past weeks.

I've been in a baking mood lately (or as always) and the other week I made a Swedish chocolate cake. The original recipe can be found here.

Butter your spring form pan really well

mixing it all up on the stove

 

Ahhmazing gooey chocolatey-ness

I recommend making this for a group and serving it warm with vanilla ice cream. I ate it plain and all by myself. After a day it was less gooey but still edible. Day two it was tossed because it was almost hard as a rock.

Also after my previous post about Grand Granola I found a recipe for Peanut Butter granola here.

 Her picture not mine. 

This granola was especially yummy on strawberry yogurt!

As for wedding news it ain't good. The wedding has been postponed due to his deployment being extended. I just pray he comes home safe and sound without a scratch upon him.

I'm going to add my newest baking adventures to the next post. Bake on my friends!

Grand Granola

Well today was my second day out of work. Yesterday was filled with all sorts of running around and spending money - today I'm staying home until going over the rents in the afternoon. Before which I will vote for the last time of being in Ohio. Women in the 1920's fought day and night for my right to vote and even though neither of the candidates are in my opinion, fit for the job I will still exercise my right to vote.

My bed wanted me to keep all day. I had a terrible night's sleep with a pounding headache (even though I took medicine before going to bed). It must of been expired because it didn't work. And I'm not a firm believer in taking the drugs if I don't have to but I figure I better take something so I don't get sick. Well this morning I woke up and it was still there. Like that song you have in your head and you think if I only sleep it won't be in my head anymore. Then when you wake up your first thought is "hey I just met you...and this is crazy..." you get the point - my headache as annoying as it was, did not disappear with sleep.







The only thing to get me outta bed was homemade granola. I've been craving it for a long long time but I had no idea how to go about doing it. I knew the first main ingredient you needed was oats of some sort. Good thing I bought a huge canister of quick oats last week - score. So (while still in bed) I Googled "easy homemade granola" and got a few good recipes. One of which I had all the ingredients and then some so I popped outta bed, threw back the curtains, started the coffee and went to work. Speaking of coffee I'm obsessed with this coffee I got from my bridal shower a few weeks back. Tiramisu coffee. Now, like any respectable coffee guru (which I am not) I am not a huge fan of flavored coffee but there are a few that are splendid and this is one.















Now lets move on the the reason we're all here...the granola. And let me just have a disclaimer I'm a "Racheal Ray" kind of cook. I use a dash here, a sprinkle here, a shake shake there etc. I don't like using measurements. This recipe is an approximate of what I did. 

Grandeur Granola
Servings: 6
Overall Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups Quick Oats
• 1/3 cup canola oil a little less
• 1/4 cup honey a little less
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• A sprinkle teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• optional: sliced almonds
• optional: coconut - I wish I had some

Instructions:
1. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and stir until combined. Spread mixture onto a greased jelly roll pan or large cookie sheet. It will look a little dry and will not hold any kind of shape. 
2. Bake at 300 for 7 minutes. Remove from oven, stir, and put back in for 7-8 minutes. 
3. Remove and stir. Let cool. Serve over yogurt or ice cream. 

Now this granola was so stinking scrumptious I had to have it two ways! Over yogurt and as cereal. If you have it as cereal I recommend very little milk or eating it quickly. These are still quick oats and were only cooked for a short amount of time so they can repel the milk for a little while but eventually they will soak it up and you end up with oatmeal. 

Over yogurt As cereal

Now...the sun is out and I have some towels to fold and some dishes to wash and someone to vote for. Happy Tuesday!

Weekly rap

Wow it's been a week? Sorry! Let's re-cap and hopefully I can say that I'll be better next week. If not then the following week when I'm officially done with work. Saturday I ended up at a birthday party - fajitas and carrot cake makes me happy! Seriously, the fajitas that they served - best I've ever ever had!!



Sunday was my bridal shower. This wonderful wedding wish was in one of my cards - love it!

Upon having fabulous homemade pie I received so many fun things. An ice cream maker - yeah baby! All of our towels and pots and pans! And not one, not two, but THREE peelers and FOUR ice cream scoops. Of all the things to get repeats of I couldn't even keep them because I already have 2 ice cream scoops and one peeler. I also received some awesome antique Pyrex baking dishes from my momma whose been collecting them for the past months. I'm in love with them!

This past Thursday I rode in my first convertible - freaking amazing!

Last night's dinner was thanks to Food for a Hungry Soul  with this recipe Simply Great Chicken

 (her picture not mine - mine was devoured to fast to take a picture)

Simply combine brown sugar and Italian seasoning and bake for an hour. Have it with mashed potatoes and - boom amazing!

Speaking of cooking I got the baking buzz tonight and made Pumpkin Cream Cheese Brownies

 All the ingredients - minus a stick of butter. I thought it called for a stick and a half and it was only half a stick. Luckily I caught that before starting!

 Pumpkin batter made, just whipping up the cream cheese topping however it called for 2 Tbs of flour - is that weird? The topping was thinner then I was expecting too but I didn't add more flour. 

 Beautiful pumpkin-ness you are delectable!

As I mentioned before this week is my last week of work - at least until we move to NC and I find something down there. I will be reporting to the office once a week to check on my new hire and clean the office. Gotta make some money somehow but now I'm thinking that with all my free time I'm going to soak up some nephew and niece time! 54 days until I'm a Mrs. I am beyond excited to marry my Marine!

Until next time...

Let's call it Saturday

It's currently 3:34pm and I just got ready for the day. Now before you go judging me and asked if I lounged around in my pj's all day the answer is no. I went to post office this morning to get the mail (duh). I also washed dishes (by hand mind you). I did that in yoga pants so technically I wasn't in my pj's, but I was just about as comfortable. Other then that...yes I lounged quite a bit today. But the only reason I physically showered and put on make up was because I was invited to a birthday party tonight. Otherwise, it's safe to say I wouldn't have showered today. Now i have to decide on what shirt I'm going to wear tonight...I think it's safe to go with layers since I don't know if their house is going to be cold or warm.

Outside the clouds are fighting with the sun to see who dominates the weather world the most today. It's cold and fall is definitely, slowly turning into winter. Part of me cannot wait, part of me can...and part of me wants a good snow fall before I move south and don't see a good snow fall for 2+ years.

I gained a "back up" bridesmaid for my wedding. In case I really do drop from 3 to 2.

My bridal shower is tomorrow and I truly cannot wait.....

My fiance sent me flowers for my birthday - technically his brother sent them but only because he was given direction by Jonathan.

Now I know some girls don't like to get roses because their cliche or if you're like Whitney Cummings on her show Whitney, you don't like a guy to pull a flower out of the ground and give it to you so you can watch it die. But I personally love roses. They are my favorite flower if Lilacs are not in season. I love the elegance and the smell of them - truly. And with Jonathan being so far away, I'm blessed that he even remembered!

That is basically all for now, hopefully I will hear from the fiance after he heals from getting his wisdom teeth pulled today. 

Birthday

Let's just start out by saying I love my birthday. I always have. It was a day I always counted down to, did nothing on, and enjoyed to the fullest. Every year it was my own personal major holiday that no one could ruin and I loved every minute. No wait...I didn't like the year 25. That is when I officially felt old and I cried most of the day because of this. Also, the day AFTER I turned 25 is when things started to hurt for random reasons. I have muscles in my elbows that randomly hurt? What?

But this year was different. Even though I had to celebrate another year sans fiance I was able to enjoy it a little more. It started with a gorgeous sunrise painted by my awesome Creator. Normally I'm not awake enough to look out the window in the morning let alone step outside in the cold air to take a picture of the sky but this day was different. Today was my birthday and I was going to enjoy it from the very beginning.

 As the day continued I was at work training my replacement. The first hour was rough as she continued to get more and more frustrated but she eventually calmed down. The work day ended with her telling me "if I'd known everything that this job entailed I would have never applied". Lovely, great, thanks. Not my problem.

I was looking forward to the evening all day. Dinner and dessert with my dear immediate family. Tacos - which were eaten so fast because I LOVE tacos and I was too busy eating 4 of them to take a picture. Then dessert was brownie sundaes. (The red stuff is strawberries in sauce.) This was really my mom's plate (she gave me permission to "instagram that!"). Mine was a much bigger more embarrassing sundae size and let's face it - eaten too fast as well. I love food...

I know I didn't post yesterday so here's a synopsis...I went to Target. Target is a trap and only twice in my life have I gone in and not spent a dime and that was only because I didn't even have a dime to spend. But I went to Target to finish buying my outfit for my shower on Sunday and I spent way too long in the shoes section....

I bought the navy flats because they were cheapest but they were too small and their getting returned tomorrow when I will go back and try to keep my spending's under $30...wish me luck because we all know that ain't easy. And that darn dollar section sucks me in every time...anyone else feel the need to buy something from it because "it's only a dollar" and "if I don't buy it now, it might not be here next time"?...yeah I figured I'm not alone.

I did hear from my fiance briefly today via facebook. Hopefully I'll hear from him this weekend - knowing my luck it will be in the middle of my bridal shower. Bring it on.

*update for Target* I spent almost $60 but half of that was birthday money so...technically I was still within budget!

Today's Bride

Well I attended my first Bridal show today and it was exactly what I thought it would be. A lot of people. A lot of vendors. Very little space. But I got this nifty little sticker to state my status for being at the show and it matched by free tote bag.

When we first arrived there was a fashion show going on so we watched that a little and left before it ended to avoid getting trampled on. We then traveled around trying to find the booths we wanted to see, getting paperwork and coupons shoved in our faces. Mom made me play plinko because we thought I would get a prize but instead I received $50 of our tux rental - too bad the groomsmen are all buying their suits from JcPenney.

We documented the day stopping at 3/4 of the photo booths. I have no interest in getting a photo booth but it was fun to test them out. It also took me until the end to start putting fake phone numbers and emails on the registration cards. I guess I'll be "unsubscribing" myself for a lot of spam emails in the next few weeks. Don't get me wrong I loved going and seeing what the show was all about and it was my only chance to ever go so that is why I took it but let's be honest - I was expecting more free cake. 

After such a travel filled afternoon I came home to watch 27 Dresses with a cup of Peppermint Tea. Oh lets not forget the mini workout I did...yeah to justify the piece of cinnamon bread I had with my tea. It was a splendid Sunday!

No word from the Fiance but maybe this week!

Welcome

A new blog for a new season in my life. Welcome.

Currently I sit here watching "It Happened to Jane" with ole Doris Day surrounded by cardboard boxes, packing tape and my trusty sharpie. Packing, taping and labeling boxes is my new hobby since getting engaged back in March to a Military man.

Two weeks after he proposed, Jonathan deployed with the USMC. These past six months I have been spent planning our wedding, planning the move to North Carolina, preparing to become a Military wife, finding an apartment to move in to and planning our honeymoon at the next possible time we'll have to take it. Yes life has been quite the journey lately and will be changing all the more in the next few months. We don't have a wedding date but it will be soon. After that we'll move down south and finally get to be together! Stay tuned for the rest of my journey to becoming a married woman and life thereafter. 

As for the coffee portion of this blog it will be sprinkled in as it keeps me moving. Currently in my coffee pot is Nicaragua coffee from Building New Hope. I enjoy it with a mulling spice brewed right in that makes it smell all Autumn-y. 

Tonight I made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Brownies. A new type of brownie as it was made on a cookie sheet instead of a 9x13 pan which made the brownies thinner but still yummy! You can find the recipe here.

Thanks for reading!