Too old for pink pants?

First of all, thank you for letting me vent and sob uncontrollably the other day.

Every now and then, we all need one of those days and that's what I did. 

Moving on...

It's my favorite time of the day right now. Ryan has already gone off to work for the day and the teenager and his friend are still sleeping (and probably will be for a while). I'm leisurely sipping on my coffee while reading up on blogs and listening to the pitter patter of the gentle rain outside. Mulder is curled up at my feet and I have no where to be today. Aaaah, relish in the happy place for a minute..

 Few things for Friday, and then I am disconnecting from the internet world for the rest of the day. 

1. I borrowed the Gone With The Wind audio books from the library yesterday to listen while I was driving. So far, I am finding it a little boring. I can usually get into audio books pretty quickly but I think I probably need to give this more time. I was only allowed to take out the first half of the audio books at this time and it is 41 CD's long! 

2. I thought about taking Mulder for a walk on the trails behind our house but it started to rain. Rain=muddy paws. 

3. I should mention this-it's one of the reasons why I love Ryan. When I stormed out of the house the other day, Ryan spent that time cleaning the house. I was gone for just under an hour and in that time, Ryan swept and steam cleaned the floors, hung up all the pictures and wall decorations from when I was painting, picked up all the dishes, cleaned the kitchen counter tops, and made the bed. He's pretty awesome like that. 

4. I had one of these last night: 

                           

Angry Orchard Hard Cider in Elderflower. I loved the light, crisp, floral taste. Ats 5% alcohol by volume, it is described as having "tropical notes from the Elderflower balanced by a fresh, bright, fruity flavor reminiscent of lychee, pears, and citrus." This has been one of my favorite drinks this summer. 

5. Tomorrow will make a full month without buying a coffee.

6. Its my birthday month! I really want to rent a bounce house for my birthday but Ryan isn't totally convinced. Hey, I'm turning 30. Bouncy-houses are totally appropriate, right? 

7. Girls night tomorrow night. Can't.freaking.wait. 

8. Ran into TJMaxx the other day to get a pair of sunglasses and walked out with a few extra items. 

Sunglasses + blackflats, leggings, pink pants, shirt. 

I really debated on the pink pants-they are very uncharacteristic of me but couldn't help myself. Is 30 to old to wear pink pants? I justified the leggings because they were only $5.99 and the black flats because I have been looking for MONTHS for a pair. The shirt was just too cute not to pass up-I love the elbow patches! 

That's all I got for today. Happy Friday and enjoy your weekend!

Question or you:

Whats your favorite summer drink?

Any exciting weekend plans?

The moment when it all hits you at once and you can't help but sob uncontrollably

Ever had one of those?

Last night, I did. Bawling my freaking eyes out, hiccuping and not able to catch my breath, nose all stuffed up and now unable to breath through my nose....I was a hot mess.

And to see how I ended up there:

8:20- The day started out fine. I got up early and left my house 55 minutes before an interview for a job that I am extremely interested in. GPS and Mapquest both tell me it takes 25-35 minutes to get there. I should have plenty of time, no problems.

8:30-ish.- Driving, driving, driving. Shit. Traffic. Look at estimated time of arrival. Still got plenty of time (phew, this is why I leave early).

8:45- Traffic picks up and I continue driving. GPS says I'm less than seven miles away and I still have half an hour before my appointment. No worries.


8:50- Fuuuuuck. What's that in the middle of the road? Shit, cars on both sides of me-can't switch lanes. Shit shit shit shit....well, I guess I'm going over it.


Clunk clunk, shake shake, rattle rattle. Car not working right. Everything is shaking. Shit shit shit shit shit.

8:51- Pull over. Look underneath car, nothing is there. Okay, I can keep going. Try to get back onto the highway and again, clunk clunk, shake shake, rattle rattle.

8:52-Okay, this isn't good. This really really isn't good. Call my father for reassurance. Tells me to call AAA.

8:52- Call interview, explain what happens, try to reschedule. Was told call back in the afternoon to reschedule. Thank them, apologize, reiterate how much I am interested in this position.

8:53- Call AAA. Wait for a tow truck. Call car dealership-let them know I am having my car towed and to please have a loaner ready. I have another interview in the afternoon. Loaner not available. Ummm, part of the deal I had when I purchased the car...fuuuuuck. Now wondering if I will be able to get to my second interview. Want to scream, but start laughing.

8:55-Wait on side of the road with cars flying by. Watch my interview time come and go. Now, I have to pee and am starving. Yell at myself for not eating breakfast. Still waiting for tow truck.

9:45-Tow truck comes, creepy guy who I can't understand tows my car to the dealership and I sit in awkward silence.

Creepy guy charges me over a 100 to tow my car. Fuuuuck. I'm broke. That's just what I need.

10:30-Car gets brought in. Talk to service dude. Wait for loaner car.

11:30 -Still waiting for loaner car. Dad comes to pick me up and I let him take me to Panera across the street for lunch.

12:30-Loaner car becomes available. Just enough time to head over to second interview.

1:00-While driving to second interview, call Ryan and tell him to make a doctors appointment for the teenager ASAP (teenager has horrible case of poison ivy). Doctor's appointment set for 3:00, asks me if I can take him. Yeah, sure. As long as I am done with my interview.

1:05- Call the first interview to reschedule. "Well, it turns out that there were quite a few applicants over the past few days so they actually extended an offer to someone. Thank you and good luck." Clikc. Fuuuuck. Not happy. Want to scream.

1:07- Call Ryan, upset. "Well, that could have been you". Yeah, thanks. It should have been me

1:30- Arrive at interview fifteen minutes early. Breath. Go to bathroom and attempt to freshen up. Take deep breaths.

1:35-Let receptionist know I am here. Shown the waiting area. Sit and wait. Watch clock tick by. Get annoyed thinking that if I need to be at doctors on time with he teenager, I need to leave by 2:30 at the latest.

1:45- Still waiting. Still watching the clock tick by. Interview was scheduled for this time.

2:00- We'll be right with you.

2:01- Go in for interview. Immediately like the people. Warm-up easily and feel confident about this. Not overly confident, but feel like I did well and that's all I can do.

2:45- Leave interview. Call the teenager and tell him to get ready, shoes on and outside waiting.


2:50- Call dealership. No update on my car.

2:53- Call doctors office. Tell them I am going to be late. Sorry. "There is a ten minute policy but we can do our best." Shiiiit

2:54- Text message from Verizon. You have gone over your minutes and will be charged until your next pay cycle begins. Awesome. I love spending more money that I don't have

3:00- Pick up teenager, swing car around and head to doctor. Thankful the doctor is only a few minutes away

3:10- Sitting in waiting room.

3:15- See doctor. "Yep, teenager, have a bad case of poison ivy." Walked out with a prescription to help aid the healing process

3:30- Drop teenager off at home and head to pharmacy to pick up his meds

3:45. Don't have his insurance card with me. Wait for Ryan to meet me at pharmacy.

4:15- Still waiting. Read magazine.

4:40- Ryan brings me insurance card.

4:45 Leave pharmacy

5:00- Home. Cook dinner. Work on summer reading with the teenager. Plan to watch movie together. Phew, finally feeling like my day is winding down

5:30- Dinner is almost done.

5:35- talk to Dealership. "Yeah, you have some problems with you car. You might want to call your insurance company." How bad? "Well, problems with this, this, that, this, and that." Over my head. All I heard was this, "Initial estimate is $3739 and some change." Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck! Want to scream and cry

5:40- Teenager's friend calls and invites him over. Ryan says yes. I get annoyed. No. We're about to have dinner..... in the middle of finishing up his summer reading...he needs to take his medicine....makes you tired.....take with food.....I've had a bad day.....something about a movie....think Ryan should have double checked with me about this....overreact over something petty.

5:50 -Pick a fight with Ryan. Scream at each other. Storm out of the house.

6:00-Call friends, need place to go while I bug out and try to calm myself down. Can't go into a store or restaurant. Not wearing a bra. Fuuuuuck . Call best friend. Cry hysterically to her and complain

6:20- Best friend calms me down. Let's me bitch to her. Says all the right things. Thankful for her.

6:45-Go home. Lock myself in my room and curl up Mulder

7:30-Go to living room. Apologize and explain to Ryan what I am feeling, thinking, etc. Turn into a blubbering mess. Cry uncontrollably to him. Everything hits me all once and I continue sobbing until I can't breath.

Needless to say, I'm glad yesterday is over.


(I just got off the phone with the insurance company and now I'm feeling slightly relieved)

Ooops. Totally overreacted yesterday. Glad today is a new day.

Easy, quick, and cheap...

...sounds like a bad tag line for a hooker. But I'm actually talking about a quick meal or snack that the teenager devoured and then made the next day on his own.

A little while ago, I made a ginormous batch of homemade ravioli and had PLENTY of the cheese mixture left over.

Just wanted to share with you an easy way to use some of that cheese mixture so it doesn't go to waste.

Yum! French bread pizza loaf!

I bought the french bread for $0.99 and cut about a third of it off, which turned out to be enough Ryan (large appetite), the teenager (potential for large appetite when it involves pizza but not when it involves vegetables), and myself.


Then, I sliced it in half, drizzled a drop of olive oil on it and shmeared some of the cheese spread on.

I topped it with some fresh tomatoes, roasted zucchini and yellow squash that I had left over from minestrone soup, and more spoonful's of the cheese mixture.

Popped it into the oven at 350 degrees for 10-20 minutes or so, till the cheese is melting and before it turns dark brown. Quick minute or two under the broiler and your good to go.

Easy. Quick. Cheap.  

French bread pizza loaf, not a hooker.

Question for you:

Do you have any easy, quick, and cheap meals that you can share? 

Cooking, organizing, and painting.

This past weekend, I managed to knock off FOUR things from my 101 in 1001 list!

I spent Friday at my mothers house learning how to cook the infamous brisket/pot roast. Turns out they are two separate things (pot roast is cooked over the stove and the brisket was cooked in the oven.)

We prepped the two cuts of meat and all that goes with it over the course of the day. I plan to do a separate post on how we cooked them so I can add that into my recipe page but for now, consider this one checked off my list and another $5.00 to my savings account.

I am also considering this as "doing something with my mother other than shopping" because we spent the day together cooking when I could have easily just called her for the recipe. So, another one check off the list and another $5.00 to my savings account. 

While we were waiting for the meats to slow-cook, I helped my mother with organizing her recipes. She has accumulated an insane amount of random recipes throughout the years through printouts, friends jotting down recipes on scrap pieces of paper, news paper clippings, and who knows where else. They were piling up in a book and she had been complaining that she could never find what she needed.

We started by separating the recipes into piles based on categories (i.e. appetizers, desserts, breakfast, breads, chicken/turkey, drinks, etc.) and throwing out the ones that she decided she would never make again. We put them in plastic zip-lock bags and labeled the bags to help keep ourselves organized. We then transferred all of the random note papers and newspaper clippings onto index cards so they would all look uniform.

piles and piles and piles of recipes

I brought her two photo albums with extra pages if needed and we inserted the recipes into the album.

So, her recipes have been organized and I can add another $5.00 to my savings account for checking that off of my list.

Total so far: $15.00 and that was for Friday only! 

On Sunday, Ryan did an incredible amount of yard work while I stayed inside to finish painting the living room/kitchen/dining area. It is a great room, separated by a giant brick fire place. A few weeks ago, I got the living room area completed and I finally finished painting the dining area and kitchen area over the weekend. A few touch-ups yesterday evening and it is finally completed.  Add another $5.00 to my savings account for completing the painting process! Wahoo

Prepping in area. 

Gotta mix the paint

Before painting. Please excuse the massive mess and clutter all over the counter-tops

Painting around the beams was tough!
There was plaster coming onto the beams so it made it look very messy.

                   

Check back for official before and after pictures and a complete post on the transformation of the space.



Oh, and check this out. I bought this on impulse and so glad I did. It was less than $10.00 and all you have to do is fill it with the paint. When you find a spot that needs to be touched up, shake the thing and twist the top. It rolls right on to the wall. Now all those little touch-ups will actually get done. It's such a pain in the ass to go to the garage, get the paint, mix it, pour it, make a mess, clean the brushes, etc.

Question for you:
How do you organize your recipes?
What housework projects are next on your list?

Friend Making Monday-10 Things That Make Me Happy

Aaaah, Monday. We meet again. It is Friend Making Monday though and after a busy weekend (where I completed 4 things from my 101 in 1001 list-read about it tomorrow), I feel ready for Monday. Weird, huh?

Anyways, Friend Making Monday...here's what Kenlie writes:

"If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

I found this last week and decided to join in on the fun again this week. 

10 Things That Make Me Happy

1. Puppies.  Seriously, there is nothing better than a puppy sitting on your lap or curled up next to you. Puppies and dogs are instant smiles for me.

The day we took Mulder home

Love this one of Mulder. 

2. When Ryan and I finish each others sentences or say the same thing at the same time. For some reason, it makes me feel good knowing that we think similarly.

3. The tree in girls area. Let me explain. Throughout my childhood and adolescence, I went to an overnight camp as both a camper and a counselor. During my last few summers as a counselor, a bunch of us would gather around this one particular tree in the middle of girls area and read. That's where I fell in love with reading

4. Dancing. There are times when I hear music and it literally hurts from the inside to sit still.


5. Which leads me to "So You Think You Can Dance"

6. Moments when the teenager feels well deserved pride. Like last week, he finally did a pull-up on the pull-up bar we've had for over a year. He has been trying and trying all year long and he finally did it. Watching him finally do the pull-up and seeing the smile on his face was priceless and it is one of my favorite moments with him.

7. The girls. I know I've spoken about them before but I can guarantee I will be laughing till my stomach hurts when i am with them, especially if we play the dirty name game.

8. My afternoon phone calls with my best friend, Julie. We don't live near each other so we spend most of our friendship over the phone.

9. The feeling of going to bed without having to set your alarm for the next morning.

10. Nieces and nephews. I promise I am not being biased, but these little ones are the cutest!

Your turn to answer this week's questions and link back up.

Homemade Ravioli

When I first read Pioneer Woman's blog, this was the first post I ever read and ever since then, I've been making "homemade" ravioli. It only sounds fancy and complicated but I promise you, it's wicked easy.  It's one of the those recipes that, although not necessarily complicated, can take a while to make from start to finish. Maybe it's just me, but they also are a bit messy when making them. 

On the positive side, they make a TON of ravioli, freeze incredibly well, and are insanely easy to prepare on a weekday night.  

Anyways, back to the ravioli. I usually make two kinds of ravioli at once: a cheese ravioli and a ground beef ravioli.

For the cheese filling: 

-2 large containers of whole milk ricotta cheese (part skim or other types of ricotta cheese do not freeze well)

-Mozzarella cheese

-Parmesan cheese

-4 Wedges of Garlic and Herb Laughing Cow cheese

-Romano cheese

-1-2 eggs

-Salt and Pepper

-Olive Oil

-Spinach

*Please note that one of the great aspects about these recipes is that it is very forgiving. Don't have mozzarella cheese? No worries. You can use any combination of cheese that you like. Don't like spinach? Try arugula. Or kale. Or nothing. Whatever floats your boat on this one. You can very easily add more or less of any kind of cheese or other ingredients as you go along on this. 

Directions: 

1. Heat olive oil in skillet on medium heat. When oil is hot, add spinach and let wilt down. Let cool and cut into smaller pieces. 

2. Mix cheeses, egg,  and spinach until very well incorporated. 

Beef Filling:

-1 lb. ground beef (I use 90/10)

-Chopped onions 

-Minced garlic

*Another forgiving filling-add in sauteed peas and carrots for an additional veggie boost.  I'm thinking some Worcestershire sauce will probably be a good addition to this as well. Like I said, this is your boat. Float it however you want. 

Directions:  

1. Brown beef in skillet set over medium-high. Add onions and garlic. 

2. Cook until no longer pink and onions are translucent. 

3. Transfer to a bowl.

Directions: How to make the ravioli

-Egg wash (I use two eggs and a bit of water)

-Won Ton wrappers (I used three packages of Nasoya Won Ton wrappers but easily had more than enough filling for a fourth or fifth package)

                                             

-Cooking  spray stuff

-Filling of your choice

1. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper and spray with oil. It's very important to spray oil where ever the ravioli are going to touch the wax paper; otherwise, they will stick to the paper. 

2. Line up won ton wrappers and brush the perimeter of the won ton wrapper with the egg wash.

3. Add a scoop of filling onto the won ton wrapper.

4. I found that it is easier to use two won ton wrappers for the beef ravioli and make a square for the beef filling. Once you have laid out the wrappers with the egg wash and put a scoop of filling (a teaspoon or so) onto the wrapper, gently lay another wrapper on top and press down on the sides to seal. It sometimes takes me a few raviolis or so to get into the groove of it, but once I've got the rhythm and process down, I'm good to go.  

5. With cheese filling, I find that one won ton wrapper is enough and they become triangular shaped. (This also helps to differentiate the two when they are in the freezer). To make these, I keep the won ton wrapper in my non-dominate hand, brush the wash on to the perimeter and add a teaspoon or so of the filling. Then, fold the bottom corner up to meet the top corner and seal the sides. If there is too much filling, the cheese mixture should just squeeze itself out when you press and seal it.  

                        

                       

                                   

                         

Additional tips and things to consider: 

1. When you run out of room on the cookie sheets, simply spray the top of the ravioli with cooking spray and then lay another sheet of wax paper on top. It's important to spray to prevent the either side of the ravioli from sticking to wax paper. 

2. I used Glad's Press'n Seal on the first and last layer. This helps to secure them on the cookie sheet and prevent freezer burn. 

                                   

3. I like to let the ravioli firm up in the freezer for at least 24 hours before I transfer them from the cookie sheet to a plastic bag. 

4. Once they are frozen completely, I take them off the cookie sheets and put into plastic zip lock bags and keep in the freezer until I need them. It's also helpful that they are different shapes. 

When all is said and done, I ended up making 30 beef ravioli and 93 (yes, 93!!!) cheese ravioli's this time. I had plenty more filling to make more of each but I ran out of won ton wrappers first. Stay tuned for what I did with the remaining cheese mixture!  

How to Cook the Ravioli: 

So remember when I said the frozen ravioli were pathetically easy to prepare? I'm taking no defrost time needed, and three minutes of prep time or less....and no dishes necessary either. Score!

Ready. Set Go. 

1. Preheat oven to 350. 

2. Put frozen ravioli in an oven safe dish and top with tomato sauce of choice. (Bonus points if you use a disposable pan and throw it out when you're done.)

3. Bake until it is warmed through. I've pulled it out of the oven as soon as twenty minutes and left it in there as long as 45 minutes. 

See, pathetically easy.

Now, throw the disposable pan in the trash and relish in the fact of how much time and energy you saved instead of slaving over the hot stove making dinner tonight. 

I always find it worth it to have a steady supply of ravioli in the freezer. They are cheaper than buying in a package, and once you put the initial leg work in in the beginning, they are more convenient to make on a busy weekday night. They are great to have on hand for when unexpected company comes over because, let's face it, it is kind of impressive to say "I just whipped up some homemade ravioli."

Yep, I can whip up homemade ravioli on the drop of a dime's notice. 

Question for you: 

What do you prefer, cheese or beef ravioli? 

Do you have any recipes that seem impressive but are pathetically easy to make? 

Skillet Style Gnocchi with Fresh Squash and Corn

I took an overly relaxing-do-nothing-of-importance day yesterday so today I am forcing myself to be in kick-butt-feel-productive mode.

Even Mulder decided that sitting and looking out the window for HOURS on end was more than enough to do. The teenager was outside doing some (very heavily bribed) yard work, and Mulder watched him like a hawk.

Despite being lazy,  no that was right-I was being incredibly lazy. Anyways, despite being lazy, I did manage to make a pretty quick, delicious, and simple dinner (simple=very few dishes)

* I adapted this recipe from a something that I've had in my recipe book for a while but I don't remember where I got it from. 

Ingredients:
-Package of gnocchi (more power to you if you make your own)
-3 ears of corn, removed from the cob
-1 small zucchini and yellow squash, cut into small pieces
-Minced garlic
-1/4 cup half and half
- 2-3 TBSP Parmesan cheese
-Fresh basil (I used 12-15 small leaves), chopped up
-Olive oil and/or butter
-Seasonings: sea salt, onion powder, oregano, pepper

Directions:
1. In a large cast iron skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. When oil is hot, spread gnocchi in an even layer. Let cook about 3-5 minutes, without touching it. Flip to the other side. Same thing: 3-5 minutes without touching.

2. Set gnocchi aside in a bowl. Add some more oil and/or butter to the skillet and let the oil warm up. Saute the garlic, corn, zucchini/squash until tender. Season as you see fit: sea salt, pepper, oregano, onion powder, etc.

3. Turn off the heat. Add the half and half, basil, and Parmesan cheese. Stir to combine.

4. Add the gnocchi back to the skillet and give it a final stir to incorporate all the ingredients. Add more seasonings if needed.

5. Let sit in the hot skillet for a few minutes to re-warm the gnocchi.

Enjoy!!!
Even the teenager, who is an insanely picky and stubborn eater, went back for seconds. Ryan loved the crisp of the gnocchi and vegetables and so did I. In the past, I have always boiled the gnocchi but I have found that cooking it in the skillet added a refreshing crispiness to it.


 I'm off to make up for yesterday's lack of productivity. On the docket for today: cleaning the bathroom, doing this workout, preparing for a meeting, having the meeting, and going to work.

Happy Thursday!

Question for you:
What do you do on super-lazy-absolutely-not-productive days?