Something Happy, Something Sad

I'm baaaa-ack! :) I have a lingering hacky cough with some congestion, and I think today I sprained a muscle coughing (no joke) because I'm in a lot of pain on my right side. STILL, I am a normal, functioning, non-streppy throat human being again! Hooray!

So as you can see from the title, I do have some sad news. We had the inspection on the house today, and it did NOT go well. I mean, there are a LOT of problems with the house that we just simply couldn't see without the trained eyes of a professional. Mold in the attic, multiple pests (including mice!), serious foundation issues, plumbing issues, serious sewage issues....I could go on. For a house that looked like it was well-taken care of, those two guys helped us see a lot of issues and helped us to realize that this house would be a money pit. When all is said and done, you can't truly fix a house that's on a bad foundation - you can only put a band-aid on it. We are still waiting for his official report, but it's pretty much a no-go.

So, besides being out about $625 dollars (between inspections and paying for a professional appraisal, which we needed to get our mortgage), it also hurts emotionally. I know that sounds corny, but I had already moved myself into that house, you know? I was planning parties there, decorating, landscaping, all in my mind. It was pretty devastating to stand there and hear all the things they were saying about my house.

Except it isn't my house, thankfully.

Although I have cried a LOT over this house today, at the end of today what I mostly feel is relief. Sure, I'm gonna miss that money, but we can make it back.

But praise God, I am not going to be throwing thousands and thousands of dollars away on a home that I know now would never truly be fixed.

It's still pretty depressing, but not a black-hole kinda depression. It's weird to feel regret, sadness, disappointment, and relief all in one big package.

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But, since I promised something sad and something happy, here is a little treat that got me through all those strep-throaty days that I wanted to share with you all. Maybe it will cheer YOU up!




I modified this from my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook:

• 1 6 oz. cup of Dannon Light 'n' Fit Vanilla yogurt (so good!)
• 1 banana, sliced
• 1 3/4 C frozen blueberries
• a splash of whole milk (count to 3 - lol!)

Blend and top with whipped cream. Makes 2 servings. De. Lish.

Shake What Your Mama Gave Ya......Or Something Like That....

This post is all about using what you've got....in the kitchen. lol ;) I blogged a few weeks ago about how hard I was trying to not let any food go to waste - even produce - and I have to say, it's been almost fun to be really creative with what I have on hand. I figured I would give a few examples of things that I've done recently, hopefully to encourage you to do the same!

Lettuce - Okay, so I get reaaaaally grossed-out by wilty, brown lettuce. But have you ever noticed that lettuce usually browns on the "thick" part first, and the leaves last? I had about 1/2 bag of lettuce starting to get icky the other day - and was about to chuck it before I remembered: "Tostada Pizza!" This is a Mexican-inspired recipe (duh, Jess) from my BH&G cookbook that requires shredded lettuce on top. I had the rest of the ingredients, so Voila! I ripped off the perfectly good and crunchy leaves, chucking only the brown "thick" parts. (Seriously, what is that part called?!)

Blueberries and Bananas - I have a great muffin recipe that needs 3 very ripe bananas. Usually when I buy a bunch of bananas, for some tremendously mysterious reason, one is always left for days. Now I've started to purposely do this - adding one brown banana at a time to my freezer. When I have 3, I pull them out to defrost and make some muffins. My favorite blueberry muffin recipe (also from BH&G) only uses 3/4 C berries - perfect for that last little bit left in the bag.

Assorted produce/deli items - One of my favorite things to eat (all year round) is a pasta salad. I have found this to be a great dumping ground for tiny bits of left-over veggies. (I'm not a big fan of vegetable soup.) I've chopped up broccoli, peppers, cukes, even small pieces of carrots! Those small cuts of cheese left from a block can be cut into blocks and thrown in - so can leftover pepperoni or ham. Half a box of leftover pasta, a little Italian dressing, and some parmesan cheese, and you're good to go!

Ice cream - when you're left with a little bit of ice cream in your freezer, scoop it out and throw it in the blender with some milk! My mom used to do this all the time growing up to make more freezer room, and we loved it. I have yet to do it with my new blender, but it's a fun idea.

Just a few ideas to get those creative juices flowing! Hope this is a little inspiring for you guys! :)

Seriously?

Several months ago, my sister and I drove up to the Starbucks drive-thru window in my hometown. My sister ordered, then I ordered my usual: tall cafe mocha, decaf/skim. I never get asked questions.

However,

a man took my order that day.

He repeated it back to me, then said,

"Okay, no whip, right?"

Pfffff.

"No, that's okay, you can give me a little."

What do I hear back through the innocent little metal box?

"Seriously?"

Now, on the one hand, one can feel sorry for this man - indeed, a measure of pity. For no man who has spent significant time with a girlfriend/fiancee/wife would ever dare to question the mental processes of a woman ordering or eating food. Especially a woman ordering chocolate. Or more specifically, chocolate-in-coffee. What this man did not - and probably cannot ever - understand, is that to a woman, it is perfectly rational to order skim milk and then put whip cream on top. I'm saving up my calories for the good stuff. I'm being good on the bottom, so the top can disobey the rules a little. Makes perfect, rational sense in my world.

This obviously was not the same world this man resided in.

So.

I just laughed, and said yes, and I got my delicious tall cafe mocha decaf skim with light whip and drove away.


All that to say, I was reminded of that experience this morning, when I made my whole-wheat flaxseed waffles (YUM!),

slathered with this





drizzled with this

with a side of turkey bacon.

Because the calories of fibery waffles and low-fat bacon and lower-fat spread and lower-sugar syrup equal one big delicious okay-for-me, right? RIGHT? Can I get an amen, ladies?




Edit: Lest anyone be alarmed, I did not actually EAT that entire stack of waffles. I made a double-batch, and those were about 1/4 of all that I made. Although I may or may not have wanted to consume them all. Without breathing.

*Recipe for these can be found in the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, page 130. I sub flaxseed for half of the called-for eggs. Be forewarned, though, that flaxseed will make the waffles runnier, so you will have to cook them a little longer than normal. Simply cook them longer now, and then you can just pop them in the toaster on the "warm" button so that they won't get burnt. (This is assuming that you will freeze a batch - this is what I always do.)

I am so excited about the next few weeks! On Friday night, we'll be going to Olive Garden with my in-laws and another couple to celebrate my sister-in-law's 30th birthday. Saturday, we're packing it up and going out to Cedarville for a few days! I can't TELL you how excited I am to see my brother and sister (and meet her boyfriend) and a few college friends that still live in the area. We'll be staying til Tuesday morning, which means we also get to go to chapel and eat in Chuck's! haha *sigh* the memories! Chris used to be in an Irish folk band at Cedarville (way, way cooler than it sounds! :), and he's going to "reunite" with their annual St. Paddy's day performance. We arrive home on Tuesday night, and on Saturday my parents and Jill are coming to visit for Easter! Can't wait.

I subbed today, and I think I actually might be falling for the little people. *gasp* Yes, it may be true. I've been seriously contemplating getting my master's in education, and not music education, for two reasons. First, from a technical/job standpoint, it broadens my horizons, and second, I'm thinking strongly about possibly teaching (upper) el. ed some day. Of course, it will be a while before I get my master's, but the thoughts are simmering, that's for sure. I thought I was a die-hard high-school girl, but who really knows..... ;)

It's time to wash some dishes before hubs (I love how she calls her husband that - it kills me) comes home. We're having burgers (we just paid for 1/4 of a cow from my husband's uncle, who raises them - to say we have a lot of available beef would be an understatement - yeehaw!) with grilled onions, homemade pasta salad, and either sauteed zucchini or garden salad with cukes. I don't know about you guys, but I am NOTORIOUS for letting produce go bad. I'll typically use 3/4 of a cucumber/bag of carrots/bag of lettuce/bag of apples, and magically *forget* what I have until I periodically purge the veggie drawer and find it inedible. So, I'm trying to be better and save a little cash.

Speaking of cash, I had a fantastic day at CVS today, but that's just another post for another day. :)

Just call me Holly Homemaker, please

Today I received the most glorious blessing (in disguise, of course). I got no call to sub at 5:30....6:00....6:30....or 7:00. Now, generally, this stinks, because we could definitely use the money (we're trying to buy a newer car, because ours are pooping out all the time). Normally when I don't get called to sub, I call up Cracker Barrel and they let me come in. However, having talked to my manager last week, I knew they weren't going to be short this Monday.

So, I embraced my day as a housewife, free of all responsibilities. It was lovely.

I made pancakes, checked all my favorite websites, got an unearthly amount of dishwashing done (definitely my least favorite household task), did 2 loads of laundry, folded 3 loads of laundry, scrubbed down the inside of the microwave (had a salsa dip explosion in there yesterday - not pretty), straightened the living room, researched and typed out all of this week's praise and worship songs for teens, sorted out coupons (you heard me! haha), vaccumed, went to my sister-in-law's house for her mini-muffin tin and to get some snuggle time in with my baby nephews, and went grocery shopping. Which still leaves me time to make some banana-chip muffins for my hard working man and make dinner (Southwest grilled chicken w/salad and seasoned noodles on the side).

Seriously, aren't these kinds of days wonderful? I feel like I have reclaimed part of my life. Or at least my countertop and my laundry room. ;)


Plus, it's like 85 degrees here today. Or maybe 50. But hey, it's gorgeous, and that's all that matters! Here's to productive days!

Ahhhh....the weekend. Last night was fun. I made what is fast becoming our Friday Night Staple: my very own Bacon, Onion, and Tomato pizza*. Then I made brownies and we went to my brother and sister-in-law's house to play Cranium Turbo (one of the best presents I received from my bridal showers, I might add). Today I slept in and now its snowing and beautiful and I just made a huge breakfast and I. love. Saturdays.


As a totally random note, I'm reading Barack Obama's The Audacity of Hope, because I want to actually know what the man says and not just repeat the rumors everyone spreads about him. He talks about the shockingly low scores that many high schoolers in this country test at (considereing the fact that we're the richest and most powerful country in the world) and says there is no reason why great, qualified teachers in this country shouldn't be making $100,000 a year. After the day I spent yesterday substituting (aka babysitting a high school French class), I think this man is on to something.


*You need:
a bag of Wal-Mart pizza crust mix
a can of diced tomatoes
one onion, chopped (I throw mine in the food processor)
7 or 8 pieces of turkey bacon (this is a staple in our house!)
pizza sauce
mozzarella cheese or whatever you like
olive oil

Preheat oven to 450. Make the dough and set aside for 5 min. Cook the bacon in a skillet. Roll out the dough and brush crust w/olive oil. Top dough w/sauce, then cheese, then onions and bacon and tomatoes. Sprinkle with a little more cheese. Cook until golden. YUM. :)

Also....

Does anyone else get Rachael Ray's magazine? Because I made her "Nacho Spuds" last night (from the insert in the middle) and they were FAB-U-LOUS!!! SO easy, and wicked good. In fact, I just had some more about half an hour ago when I got home from work, and I dare say they're better a day later. In my world, you just can't go wrong with Mexican.

I heart Jon and Kate + 8, Project Runway, and Flip That House.

I heart getting hired as a substitute, even though I still have to get a drug test and a physical (Hallelujah Chorus now resounding in my head!)


I also heart Rachael Ray's "Janet's Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake*", which I made today. Yum-o!



Ahhhhh.....love all around.

The end.




*Everyday with Rachael Ray, May 2007, page 105

Last night I had a little dinner party. It was just us and Chris's parents, but we had such a great time! Let me tell you, a large part of me was just excited to be able to use my napkin rings from Gabe's (a great little store they had in West Virginia and I've never seen anywhere else) for the first time!


The menu:
3-cheese pepper/onion/chicken bowtie bake (haha - my mom's delicious recipe!)
garlic bread
garden salad
oatmeal cake with cocount-brown sugar icing for dessert (courtesy of Mary - my father in law loves this cake, and I happened to have made it the weekend I got engaged - this cake is
gooood! :)


I didn't think to take any pictures last night, but here's one picture of the cake - delish!





Our apartment is so tiny, and my poor father-in-law had to be squeezed into the corner and couldn't really get out unless we moved the whole table! But we had such a good time, and I'm glad I didn't let the tightness of the space hold me back from having them over - Sandy at 4 Reluctant Entertainers would be so proud of me!

I am so thankful for good food, good times, and wonderful in-laws that love us and the Lord.

I have been in a cooking slump lately. Maybe it is because my Rachael Ray subscription ran out in August, and my new subscription (a full year this time!) hasn't arrived in my mailbox yet. Actually, I think it's because I'm just plain tired and famished when I come home from work and the thought of standing on my feet for another hour just doesn't appeal to me. I cooked every night last year - and we're talkin' lip smackin' good dinners, with sides. Oh dear. I love cooking, and I love my husband. I really do try....I've just been brain-dead when it comes to new recipes lately.

I did try virgin beer-battered fish the other night. And by virgin, I mean that we don't drink beer (aka-pee-in-a-bottle - yuck!), so we didn't have any beer, so I researched on the internet for half an hour for substitutes for beer (and club soda is apparently the only thing remotely close), so I asked my poor, poor husband to go to out twice to the store, and so the recipe eventually ended up becoming fried fish with club soda instead. It didn't turn out too bad, if I do say so myself. Of course, anything smothered in tarter sauce can't taste too awful anyway, right? Yummmmmm.

Tonight I think I'm going to make burgers with carmelized onions and Rachael Ray's "Oven Steak Fries" (30-Minute Meals 2; page 201). Monday my in-laws are coming over and I'm making my mom's awesome 3-cheese and 3-pepper chicken and bow-tie casserole with salad. Does anyone have any quick week-night meals that work for them? Please share them with a desperate housewife. ;)