yes, yes, you can comment...

I am so happy! My audience is clamoring to leave comments! Hooray! If you are one of the people who I am fortunate enough to be sharing my life with, but, you are not wanting to subscribe to something just to leave a comment -- do not be sad. There is an easy way to show me that you took time out from your day to spend a moment with us.

How to leave a comment without subscribing:

1) Select the word "comments" appearing below the desired posting.

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The comment will not appear immediately. I have my blog set so that when I log in I get to read comments before they are posted. It's just easier for me, so I don't have to go searching through the blog to see if anyone has left comments that I don't know about -- because then I would be missing out!

Oh, and, if you don't want to be so anonymous, you can put your name right in there with the rest of your comment! :-)

P.S. If these instructions don't work -- please send me an email so I can correct them.

what to do on another...

...snow(y) day. It is not an official school snow day -- but I was not liking the condition of the roads this morning -- so, we are kind of "playing hooky" together. Shhh... don't tell!



We made homemade pizza crust and topped it off with leftover meatballs and sauce. Sofia made sure that the amount of mozzarella cheese was exactly right.

I had myself happily selfishly preoccupied (from the snow) with a crafty kind of project, so when I realized it was time to make lunch, poor Sofia was sooo hungry she would have eaten anything. I offered her some broccoli and she declined, so motherly instinct told me I still had a bit of time. I looked across the counter and there was the yeast "made especially for pizza crust". So, I offered this, and she was more than happy to have a cooking lesson AND a delicious lunch.

Here's the yeast I used for the pizza crust. It works great! I feel empowered. It takes 30 minutes to make and cook the pizza -- start to finish. Don't forget to pick some up next time you are at the supermarket.




The recipe on the back of the package made a 12" rectangular pie -- just enough for the three of us. It tasted great too! And, yes. I ate that last piece right after it posed for this picture. :-)

cleaning instructions...

Even I have my limit when it comes to how far from "her spot" Sofia's mess should travel. Do you think she's overstepping her boundary here? This is what I found on the kitchen counter this morning -- AFTER I came back from walking her to the bus stop.



Big question -- WHY is it necessary for the pen to remain in that particular spot? Guess I'll have to wait until she gets home to find out.

comfort food...

...and a new toy! :-) Well, not really a new toy -- a new ginsu knife. And, it works great! For this dinner, I sliced through the veggies and beef like --buttah! :-) We picked up a set of 2 of these at Sears this weekend -- on sale for $17.99 and we got a $10 discount for applying for their store credit card -- so my 2 knives cost us $7.99 (plus tax). Wee hoo! Go get yourself a couple -- and then make your favorite comfort dinner. Here's the recipe for mine:

1 pound bottom round cut into small 1" pieces

1 small onion

1 carrot

4 medium sized russet potatoes

1 can low sodium beef broth (14.5 oz)

1 small can tomato paste (6 oz.)

pinch of dried basil

pinch of dried oregano

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons extra light olive oil

Slice onion and brown in olive oil. Add dried basil and oregano to onion while it is browning. Just as onions are beginning to caramelize, add bottom round. Brown beef on at least two sides. Add beef broth. Lower heat to a simmer. Peel and wash carrots and potatoes. Chop them into the same size pieces as the beef. Set aside. Fill empty beef broth can with warm water and mix together with tomato paste in a measuring cup or bowl until the tomato paste is liquifed. Add tomato paste mixture to simmering pot. Add carrots and potatoes to simmering pot. Your pot should be narrow enough so liquid covers all the meat and vegetables. Add teaspoon of sugar and stir gently. Cover and simmer until you can pierce the potatoes with a fork. About 45 minutes. Enjoy with crusty italian bread.

super talent...

Remember these waifs and strays?




They're new home is almost complete! Okay, so you're scratching your head and thinking -- what am I looking at? I'll explain. The unpainted wood that is nailed to the wall is the base for the new bench located by the back door. That is the easy part. What I am loving is the half wall that my super talented husband constructed (as per my design request). This was an item on our "list of things to do" before our house was even built. The builder was not flexible regarding such things at that point in history -- before the great economic collapse -- and shook his head to this alteration in the house blueprint. So... instead of focusing on the negative -- I am happy to show you the positive. Oh, and while I'm at it -- don't forget that the closet behind the new bench area was also constructed by my super talented husband (see pic below taken during my 2008 flu episode).

Let's see... What's missing in this picture? Closet, half wall, hardwood floor (to the right of Tahu), upper curtains in kitchen, curtain on back door, area rug under kitchen table. Sofia is so little -- and she has bangs!

I know what you might be thinking. But even "super talent" has its limits. So hold those requests, and, then, maybe, after he gets through some framing, sheetrock, taping, spackling, etc. in the basement, and then, some well-deserved golfing... Keep in mind that this particular "magical transformation" has taken 3 years. I'm sure you get the idea. :-)

hey, yo, yo...

...100 days is what I'm sayin'



80 more...and then we're playin'
In the pool
Not in school
Hey...
...yo!

drumroll please...

I have had a request to post a picture of the finished powder room project. I am more than happy to fulfill this request. I am pleased that while my blog may be lacking in the "comments" area -- it excels in the email/telephone feedback area. Because we live further than a 20 minute drive from close family & friends, this was the original purpose of my blog -- to connect with all of you. I feel that I have been successful in this endeavor thus far and hope to enjoy the fruits of this continuing labor of love... :-)


So, now without further delay, I give to you...


the finished powder room!





The walls are a cheery kind of yellow -- with a hint of green. We now have a lovely glass shelf and a mirror that fits. The oversized builder's grade non-powder room towel bar has been replaced with a lovely towel ring (located behind the door that I can actually fully open now). The builder's grade toilet paper holder (which was screwed into the wall and through the duct work behind the wall) has been replaced with one that is properly installed and coordinates with everything else.


But -- oh no -- wait...


What's this...




Sigh... I'm off to find the spackle... again. Hopefully it will dry and I can get it painted BEFORE Sofia has another chance to pick it out of the wall again.