2.28.2011

It's been awhile...

My last post was 5 days ago.
Did you guys think I was dead?
Thankfully, I'm not.
Just really, really boring & uninspired lately.
My bad.

[The highlight of my weekend was playing Oscar bingo...]
Last week I tried to sew a supposedly easy potholder using bias tape and it turned out so horribly that I cried my eyes out (my husband thought I was losing my mind).
I hate a) failing and b) wasting time.

Work has been busy because of a bank refinancing.
No time to brainstorm blog ideas.

The weather has been so-so. Kinda rainy & drab.
Not good for my motivation.

Excuses, excuses!
I need to quit my bellyaching and do something cool
so I have things to blog about.

TO DO LIST

1. Make a to-do list (check!)
2. Make homemade thin mints & give you the recipe
3. Secretly eat all of homemade thin mints
4. Feel guilty & make a salad for lunch the next day


5. Go thrift shopping with Mom
6. Share more wedding photos on blog
7. Vacuum the car (not exciting, but desperately needed)
8. Make a spring purse
9. Get in shape for lacrosse season
10. Learn to make Tim's favorite Indian meal: lamb chettinad
So yeah, I better get on these before you're bored to death with my blog.

2.23.2011

Recipe Wed: Curried Chicken

My husband and I have been spicing things up lately... in the kitchen!
Bow chicka bow wow.

Not only do certain spices make your meals taste amazing, they're also good for your health.

Turmeric (found in curry powder & mustard) is rich in antioxidants & fights inflammation.
Cumin is an excellent source of iron and helps digestion & bloating.
Cinnamon helps improve circulation, inflammation & has blood thinning properties.
Ginger contains antioxidants and helps with digestion, nausea & gas.

If you're like, "Golly gee, Meg, that sounds neat," you can read more about health & spices here.

My new favorite dinner helper is this little jar of curry paste above.
I  followed the handy recipe on the jar to make curried chicken . It was only for 2 people so I doubled it. We love our leftovers!
Unfortunately, my co-workers didn't feel the same when I reheated it at work the next day... it's pretty pungent.

It's also helpful for opening up the sinuses.
And it's supposedly the non-spicy "mild" kind. Yeah, right!
[Diced tomatoes, onion, water, curry paste & chicken.]
[It's traditionally served with rice, but we love our cous cous. Especially the plain Far East kind.]

You can find similar recipes on Patak's website.
Or just do what I did and read it right off of the jar!

This meal could become a new weekly staple. So so good.

 

Living with a Dude: Part II

Our weapons collection has expanded. 
Seriously, you do NOT wanna break into our apartment.


What, you don't have a hacksaw on your kitchen counter?


I love my husband.

2.22.2011

Tuesday Morning Gripefest

I don't want to turn this blog into a place where I complain all the time.
Sometimes, things just really annoy me and I gotta let it out.
Maybe it's the 5 inches of snow we got over night (after a 70 degree weekend).
Maybe it's the fact that I didn't eat breakfast this morning.
I promise you, this will not happen regularly.
So here we go...

Gripe #1: Your Job
People with jobs who complain about them... annoy me. I've had crappy jobs. We all have. If you honestly cannot stand your job, find a new one. Yes, they're out there. It might take you a few solid months of searching, but it's possible. You don't like what you're getting paid? Maybe you should have thought about that before you majored in art. Or philosophy. Or women's studies. Unless you're the next Picaso or Aristotle, those majors will never ever ever pay off. And just to be clear, you don't HAVE to go to a traditional 4-year college to get a good job that you enjoy. Parents who push this on their kids annoy me. My husband hated sitting in a classroom. But put some tools in his hands and let him play around under the hood of a car and he'll shine. If you want a career that you'll enjoy and that pays well, you have to be practical. I love giving people advice and organizing things. As a paralegal, that is literally what I do all day. I didn't just pick it because I thought it sounded cool, I picked it because it's an in-demand job.  During my senior year of college, I started thinking ahead and my mom even did research about what jobs would be prevalent in the future. She brought the paralegal idea up to me, I liked it, so I did what was necessary to get the job. I went into my major (communications) knowing that additional schooling after graduation could be necessary. I worked full-time at the front desk of a small law firm while going to night school for a year. It was hard, but it paid off big time. I love what I do now and also feel that I am fairly compensated for it.

Gripe #2: Your Health
People who always complain about being sick... annoy me. Achieving and maintaining good health is no longer a mystery. We've figured it out. It's all about your immune system. If you keep it strong, it will fight off bacteria & viruses for you. If you don't take care of your immune system, you will get sick often & be miserable. We even know what things strengthen our immune systems. There are countless super foods, vitamins, minerals & herbs that your immune system loves. All you have to do is read a few books and google a few articles. There are countless websites that tell you, word for word, how to prevent colds. How to limit their number, length & severity. Yet all people do all winter is complain about their 8th, 9th, 10th cold.
If you can't do a few simple things during cold & flu season, then frankly, you deserve to be sick all winter. I feel no pity for you.

Gripe #3: Your Weight
Setting aside serious medical problems or unavoidable medications that lead to weight gain, you CAN lose weight (if you want to, ahem, Donna Simpson in New Jersey). Diet & exercise. Diet & exercise. Diet & exercise. There are no ways around it. You have to eat less, eat healthy and move around. Tim and I went out for Mexican food on Saturday night and sat at a table next to a very large family. There were only 5 of them, but what was large was their individual sizes. Mom, Dad, 2 boys & a girl. The kids were larger than their parents (already) which was the really scary part. The other scary part was how much food they consumed at one sitting. The portions at this particular Mexican joint are big. Enough that Tim and I had to have half of our meals boxed and we finished them for the lunch the next day. But each person in this family housed their entire meal and multiple sodas, they each ordered & finished dessert (fried ice cream) and the kids got giant, sugary gumballs out of the gumball machine on the way out.
I almost couldn't enjoy my meal with them next to us. It was appalling. With everything we know about how to live a long, healthy life... how can you do that to yourselves and your children? They're all doomed to a life of type 2 diabetes and heart disease if they don't change their ways ASAP. It's science. 

*********

Tuesday Morning Gripefest is now over.
Ahhh, that feels so much better.
And just to prove that I'm not being a TOTAL debbie downer today,
I'll leave you with this clip from the episode of Seinfeld that was on TV last night.


Sweet Fancy Moses!

2.21.2011

Pretending it's Spring

Mother nature gave us a small dose of Spring over the weekend, 
and we took full advantage of it.







*****
So what else has been going on lately? Hmm, let's think. 
Tim bought be some great perfume from Victoria's Secret. 
[How cute is the bottle!?]

I've never really been a perfume girl (I shower, I'm clean, what's the point?) but 
this stuff is amazing. I literally smell like a burlesque dancer. 
But not a trashy, gross one.  Think Dita Von Teese.

*****
Ran for the first time in 2 months. THAT was interesting. I did a little over 2 miles and almost vomited afterwards. My leg muscles hated my guts he next day. Gotta push on though. I start reffing girls' lacrosse again in mid-March. My 3rd season! And I still feel like I have no idea what I'm doing.

*****
The hunt is on for a solution to our boring non-working fireplace.
This is what it looks like right now.


We nabbed the grate from my parents house & believe it or not, I snagged the birch logs on eBay! They are real but way too small for this huge fireplace and I am getting angry with their lameness. 
I've googled lots of solutions: potted plants, stacks of books, giant candles, giant glass vases... but none of them are calling out to me. Do you guys have any ideas? 
I'm looking to spend no more than $30. 
I'm thinking of thrifting for a shelf or something. I can't describe it.

I always need a little project to keep me occupied. 
Can't ever sit still :-)

2.17.2011

Chocolate + Peanut Butter = Crazy Delicious

I'm just going to say it. 
If you don't like chocolate & peanut butter mixed together, you're insane. 

And to those of you with nut allergies, sorry you'll never know one of life's greatest pleasures. 
You probably shouldn't read any further. The risk of ignoring potential anaphylactic shock to make these is too great.

My husband volunteered to cook with me the other night (whoa, hold the phones, yes it's true) and we made these wonderful chocolate peanut butter cups.
The best part was licking melted chocolate off spoons, bowls, etc.
And etc. is not code for each other, ya pervs.






One is basically the size of 4 Reese's PB Cups.
GENIUS.

Living with a Dude: Part I

I am starting a little blog series called Living with a Dude.
I think all the married ladies out there will be able to relate.
I bring you Part I, which just happened yesterday.

Decor

Each morning I wake up to find my husband's
decorative touches throughout the house.



Only a husband can tackle accent table decor
& his athlete's foot problem, simultaneously


Disclaimer: I love my husband to death! I am in no way criticizing him. Everyone is different and I am simply showcasing & celebrating our differences in a humorous light. I am not perfect, either. Like when I don't clean the bathtub for a month.

2.16.2011

What's for dinner? Gourmet Pizza

Boboli Whole Wheat pizza crusts have made at least 1 dinner per week a breeze.


My only issue with them is the questionable preservatives & "artificial color." At least they've wised up and now use regular old sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup. Hey, nobody's perfect.
It sure beats ordering out or heating up something frozen. You at least feel like you're cooking when you add your own toppings & whip a snazzy pizza out of the oven.
[Slicing your thumb open also makes you feel like you're  actually cooking, but I advise against it.]
I've made these kinds of pizzas dozens of times before, but last night's was particularly impressive.
Just ask my husband, the wannabe professional food critic.
His comments usually make me a better cook. But sometimes I get frustrated and end up yelling something like Why can't you just tell me it's good!! I shed a few tears and then he feels bad and apologizes. I take dinner very seriously.

We are totally normal.

Sausage, Onion & Spinach Pizza

Ingredients
1 pizza crust (Boboli or make your own if you're bored)
3/4 c. marinara
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 c. spinach leaves, roughly chopped
1/2 of an onion, chopped
1/2 lb. sausage*, cooked & chopped into bite-sized pieces

*We use uncured sausage, bacon & hotdogs whenever possible to avoid nitrates. They are not cool.

Directions
Cook your sausage stovetop on medium-high heat for about 3-4 min. on each side. It's way easier to slice when it's cooked, so definitely do this first. I learned the annoying way.


While the sausage is sizzlin', preheat the oven to 425 and prep your veggies.


Then layer your ingredients like so:

Marinara
Spinach
1 c. mozzarella
Onion
Sausage
1 c. mozzarella

[Putting the spinach under the cheese helps to keep it in place!]
Bake for 12-15 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before cutting & serving.

[It's not delivery, or DiGiorno.]

2.15.2011

Thrifted V-Day Dress

[Before, Sal Val, $4]
Not my first, and certainly not my last thrifted item of clothing.
However, it's the first one I saw potential in on the rack.
I knew with a little snip here and a little hem there, I could turn this Amish-esque disaster into something a little more modern.

It turned out great & I ended up wearing it to dinner on Valentine's Day.

[After]
While we're at it, let's see how cute my husband looked.


For the record, this is as dressed up as you'll ever see him, besides in our wedding photos.
I don't think he even owned a button-down shirt before I met him.

Eenie Meenie Minie Moe

Since all of two people entered my first giveaway, it's kinda silly to declare only one winner. So you'll both be getting something awesome & handmade.

Congrats Beth & Joy!

Thank you for not making my first giveaway totally lame.
(Although let's face it, by most blogging standards, it was.)

Moving on...

Here is a recap in photos of our Valentine's dinner out.
We exchanged some gifts on Saturday afternoon & went to Macaroni Grill (a small step up from Olive Garden) for dinner that night. They have paper tablecloths & crayons.
We took full advantage of that.


[They trust you to mark how many glasses of wine you drink from the bottle on your table. I was honest, I swear!]
[by Meg]

[by Tim]



[Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake]

 

2.14.2011

My Furry Valentine

For our first Valentine's Day as a married couple, I gave my husband what he really wanted.

A giant breakfast & a furry hat.

He was a happy hubby, indeed!


He reciprocated by selecting gifts for me at Crate & Barrel.

Be still my heart.
Could he know me any better?

A bamboo cutting board, bamboo salt keeper & a snazzy new wine stopper
are far superior than flowers that die, chocolate with mystery fillings & a dust-collecting stuffed animal. (In my opinion).

2.11.2011

Valentine's Weekend Giveaway/Bribe

Here we go...
I'm going to try my hand at a giveaway.

I'm not a big-time blogger yet,
so I don't have any sponsors that give cool freebies away.
However, I will personally make something by hand and mail it to whoever wins.
Yes, I'm talking about a good old fashioned bribe to get people to follow my blog.

I'm going to sew something.
Apron? Potholders? A skirt?
It's a surprise and will not be lame.
That's a promise.
You might even be able to persuade me to make what you want if you win.
[Some of my previously-made goods]

HERE'S HOW TO ENTER
1. If you aren't already, follow my blog by clicking on the "Follow" button on the left side of my blog.
2. Comment on this post with the words "BRIBE ME!" and then tell me how you would bribe someone to do something. Let's keep it PG.
3. Include your e-mail address in your comment so I can contact you if you win.

The giveaway will end on Monday night at 11:59pm and
a winner will be chosen via Random.org & announced on Tuesday morning.

I'm actually nervous.
Hopefully this isn't a complete flop.