Lent, books, and babies

I'm not Catholic so I don't observe Lent but last year my friend Amy and I took it as a challenge to eat healthier and we nixed sweets from our diets. I was surprised how well we did...until a week before Lent ended and then we both said forget it and had cookies. Well. Lent is upon us and I decided to take the challenge again and I roped encouraged Mark to join me so we could support it each other. He is giving up precious Dr. Pepper and I am giving up cookies, brownies, and my beloved ice cream (and making Mark too since it would cruel and down right rude for him to eat that stuff in front of me!) *moment of mournful silence* Except we're allowed small cheats on Sundays because the dietitian in me realizes that I HAVE to have some cheat days or I'll go mad. MAD. So far it's been good. I haven't been tempted or craving anything, though every time I open the freezer and see Bluebells' "I Love Chocolate," I have a split second cringe moment. 

Anyway, I also have been trying to cook about 3 times a week. This week we had grilled salmon, grilled asparagus, and rice. Mark got to bust out his grilling skills and did most of the heavy work. It was yummy! But seriously, I should have gotten salmon completely skinned or whatever the correct term is because there was skin on the underside that I ripped off before we grilled it and I nearly threw up from the smell. I don't mind fish but that smell was a little too fishy for me. Yuck. 

And I realize this picture is not very appetizing, if at all, but we've also decided (aka I have decided and Mark is being a good sport and going along with it) to try to have a vegetarian meal once a week. I could tell Mark was really skeptical but I was determined to prove to him that I could find some tasty entrees. So, tonight I made black bean and quinoa enchilada bake. It was SO good (despite this bad picture)!! I topped mine with sliced tomatoes, avocados, and green onions. DEE-LISH. Even Mark was impressed. Wahoo! You know it's a successful dish when the red meat lover likes a vegetarian dish (I think it helped that it was a Mexican dish). 

And what do you know just in time for Lent I got this cookbook in the mail (which I had ordered months ago and have been waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiting for it to finally be released!). April is not that far away. I can do this. I can.

Since we're on the topic of one of my favorite things--books--I have to tell you about a new author that I LOVE: Juliet Marillier. Holy cow. I'm addicted to her books. One of my new friends here recommended one of her books and I can't get enough. So, let me back up. The first book I read was, "Wildwood Dancing." It's based on the fairy tale "Twelve Dancing Princesses," but she also intertwines that story with some of the folklore of Transylvania (NO not vampires but alludes to that). It is SUPERB. Also I should tell you that I am not a science fiction fan but I do have a very soft spot for fairy tales, and well written ones. FABULOUS read. It was one of those books that I thought about all day long and longed for some time to read. Well. There's a second book, but about one of the other main characters, and the library didn't have it so I did what was necessary...bought it off Amazon (and Wildwood Dancing!). If I am willing to purchase a book, it's a big deal; it's got to be good. I've read a lot of good books, but few that I buy to read again and again. While I was waiting for my parcel of books, I did some research on the author and discovered she had several other books. Well, like I said, I love a good fairy tale but get too science fiction on me and I'll lose interest. But desperate for something to hold me over, I picked up a series she wrote called "Shadowfall." It started off slow and I almost stopped reading but WOW, once it took off I was hooked. I finished the first book in a few days and then HAD to have the second one. It's so good. Riveting. Very creative. She's good. I am enjoying it so much I read while I bike in the mornings and yesterday I was truly angry that I had to go to work because I just wanted to read and find out what happens! I thought of the book the entire day. Ok, I admit, I do, at times, get emotionally attached to books I read. But, I think that's a sign of a good book. So, I was looking to borrow the third one from the library only to find that the third book ISN'T EVEN OUT YET!!! I have to wait until SEPTEMBER?!?!?!? CURSES!!!!!! THAT IS SO CRUEL!!!!!!!!!!! I'm going to die from curiosity. DIE. Oh my gosh it's going to be torture. I almost considered not finishing the second one (that lasted for about 0.00003 seconds). I'll have to check out some of her other series. You're lucky I am using up some reading time to blog. But I had to share.

I never really understood why my mom referred to her flowers as her children but now I understand why. I am growing grape hyacinths from bulbs, which I have never done before and I'm scared that I will fail. And friends I BABY these flowers. I check the weather, bring the pot outside and bring it in if it's going to be too cold. It's kind of silly but I am determined. So, yesterday I walked outside to head to work and I looked down and saw this:

THEY ARE PEEKING THROUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I kid you not I dropped everything, knelt by the pot and just stared incredulously. They are growing! WHAT!!!??!!?? Oh happy day!!!!! I was so proud I Instagrammed them and kept talking about it with Mark when we got home. 

Now, this is what they look like today. 

I am SUCH a proud "mom"!!!

It's true.

I've been avoiding my blog. 

Except this past week I keep thinking of things to blog about but then I feel like I have so much to catch up on and then I convince myself that most of the people who read this already follow me on Instagram or Facebook so they already know what's going on. But then again those are only snippets and it's not narrated. And Mark pointed out today that it's been awhile. So, I'll do my best.

First of all...I got married!!!!!!!!!!! In December. Now I'm a Sadie! (Sadie, Sadie Married Lady. Name that movie. Streisand! Anyone? Anyone?) And it was the most perfect day. There is not one thing I would change about the day. I know lots of friends who have said they wish they could go back and do things differently. I don't. It was exactly as I wanted it to be. It was cold, miserably cold (low teens and then got down to single digits in the afternoon), but beautiful and I didn't care because, hello!, I just got married and I was surrounded by dear, darling, wonderful friends and family. And it snowed!!! Perfection. 

Here are some of my favorite shots:

We got married in the LDS Boston Temple

My brother, Dane, is currently serving a mission for the LDS (Mormon) church in Australia and since he couldn't attend the wedding in real life and I wanted him to "be there," we had a life-size cardboard cut out of him. This is one of my favorite pictures! 

And since Mark and I are both avid baseball fans, we took pictures around Fenway Park, which was a blast! 

Three of my very best friends came for our wedding. My only regret is that I didn't have enough time to catch up with them and have more "girl time." And when we had our reception in Dallas in January, two more surprised me and showed up. I don't know how I got so lucky to have these INCREDIBLE friends!

Now you have to understand, I am a food snob at times and if you know nothing about me, I LOVE Regina's Pizza in Boston. Well as luck would have it, I knew they had opened up a shop near Fenway and our photographer, Jennifer White--who was *wonderful* and I HIGHLY recommend her--was cool enough to take some shots in the pizza place. 

Yes. We ate pizza after we took pictures. In our wedding get-up. We were starving! And cold! 

Now for the "reception," we opted to do more of an open house. I envisioned an intimate, fun setting. I wanted to greet and chat and hug every single person that came to celebrate with us because I want them to know it meant a lot and that I love them. I think it was a success. Even with snow storms in the forecast, I love my New Englanders who braved the looming storm to come. My mom made the desserts. Yes, all of them. Thirty-something cookies/brownies, etc., including our three-layered chocolate peanut butter with ganache wedding cake. 

As I said, it was perfect. Mark and I spent a few days in Boston on a "mini-honeymoon" and then the craziness began. I worked for 2 hectic days when we got to Myrtle Beach and wrapped things up. Gosh it was a whirlwind. We loaded my stuff in a U-haul and headed to Texas. (Fun fact about Gabe: I do not enjoy road trips. No I do not). We arrived in San Angelo on a Sunday, spent two days getting the keys for out apartment, me filling out paperwork for my new job and getting an official start day, and then we headed to Dallas for a few days for Christmas, and then headed back to San Angelo. Lots of time in a car...

San Angelo is...

I don't even know what to say. It's artsy, country, unique. It's isolated but a nice jumping point to Dallas, San Antonio, Austin and some smaller towns that have a lot to offer. My favorite town that we have visited (aside from Dallas because a) Mark's family is there and I love them and b) it has every shop I could think of to shop at INCLUDING the biggest Whole Foods I have ever seen!) so far has been Fredericksburg. THANK GOODNESS Texas has antique shops. I found a darling kitchen hutch in an antique store here in San Angelo a month ago that I fell in love with, had to have and is one of my favorite purchases ever. 

I wouldn't live here by choice but having someone (aka Mark) to do things with has made all of the difference. We have a list of things we want to do while we are living here. I've turned our apartment into a bit of a sanctuary. I love coming home to our apartment. It's cozy and our little haven. I love decorating and planning  and in the mean time, dreaming of our future home. We have several little projects that we are working on. We painted an accent wall in our living room (only one because we have to paint it back before me move) and I love it. We still need a few pieces of furniture but it's fun to hunt and wait to find the piece and then to see rooms come together. I'll post pictures in a little bit. Right now we have laundry to fold, it's gloomy, and Mark is studying so there are papers and binders askew. 

I cook more, which I was scared of when I got married because I don't think I'm a good cook or even a cook and it seems daunting. Plus, Mark's mom is an aaaaamazing cook and now I have to feed her son? Umm...intimidating. I bake. I like sugar and flour and a vanilla and the myriad of ways I can manipulate a small bit of ingredients to produce delectable treats. It thrills me! But, thank you Pinterest, I am becoming a bit more confident with cooking and it's been quite fun. Also Mark likes to cook so when I don't want to or don't have the energy, he will! Or we just go for cereal. Can't beat it! I haven't burned or completely botched a recipe yet. Plus it makes it much more worthwhile when you have someone to cook for beside yourself. I actually do enjoy it and have a goal to cook at least 3 times/week (and then we have leftovers!).

 Last night I made buffalo chicken stuffed peppers with guacamole (well, Mark made the guac because he's the master). INCREDIBLE. Recipe here

San Angelo is barren, dry, and reminds me of Utah/Nevada/Arizona. Not my favorite geography (I'm sorry, the desert does nothing for me) so I've decided to create a "garden" of potted plants indoors and outdoors. I need greenery! Yesterday I planted pansies, pincushion flowers, and white knights. Our neighbors even commented on them! *smug face* I finally planted the grape hyacinth bulbs Mark's Mom got me. I'm scared I did it all wrong and that they will die but time will tell. I must have read several articles about how to pot grape hyacinths and what pot is the best, the best weather conditions, how wet the soil should be, how deep to plant them. etc. For the love. Please just let them bloom. And I got some succulents because I just think they look so cool!

So here's a day in the married life of Gabe (or close to it):

*Mark wakes up around 5:15-5:30am because he has to be on base around 6:15. I half consciously listen to him get ready, he leaves, calls me when he gets to base a little after 6am to make sure I get up because snoozing alarms is easy and talking to him wakes me up so that I will get out of bed and work out.

*I get up and work out. I never thought I'd be a morning exerciser but in the short amount of time I have been doing this, it has become a favorite part of my day. It's quiet and I get some time to myself. Exercising before work is also genius because then it's done and out of the way! 

*I go to work, where I work at a hospital in town. Ok pause. Let's talk about work. I don't mind San Angelo that much. I don't (also it helps to know that this is not a permanent situation. Also Mark is a wonderful husband--seriously, I really lucked out--and makes life blissful). I'd rather live in the Dallas area if I had to live in Texas but whatever, we didn't get to choose so here we are. I do, however, at times DESPISE San Angelo because my job often makes me want to cry and/or rip my hair out and/or seriously consider a new career. Truly. I try not to complain but, I'm often miserable at work. I even started covering our ICU unit, which was my goal/dream and one of the major reasons I worked for my CNSC, and even then, eh. I miss my old job. I desperately miss my partner in crime and fellow redhead Amy. Desperately. I walked into a very divided and tense department. It's a disaster. And why the heck did I chose a field predominantly female? Good gracious. WAY. WAY. WAAAAY too much estrogen for me. Plus you cram 6 females in an office the size of shoebox and that's enough to drive me mad. I think it's also a mix of being the new kid (I had WAY more freedom at my last job, a lot less people breathing down my neck, and among the defining characteristics that make me up, independent is most certainly one of them, and I feel suffocated), starting to get burned out clinically (I'd love a job that recognizes holidays), and the constant drain of working in a very dramatic, negative environment. I find myself trying to find more reasons to avoid the office and delight when I am so busy I only take breaks for lunch and then to drop my stuff off at the end of the day to go home. Culinary school looks better and better by the hour. I'd rather cook, bake, and create fun, yummy things that make people happy. I mean how can someone get upset over a cookie? Seriously! But hey at least I can wear scrubs to work. I have cool colleagues that help. I look forward to the day I can go part-time or not work at all and be a stay-at-home-mom. Alas, I endure.

*After work I usually run errands (usually to the post office, the library, or the grocery store) and either meet Mark on base to work out, or go home and work out at the gym in our apartment complex. 

*Then we have dinner and Mark usually studies and I read, clean, do laundry, Pinterest recipes, plan menus, online "window" shop (usually for furniture, and more recently clothes since I feel isolated and there are maybe 2 good clothing stores here), and then sometimes we may watch Gilmore Girls (I've got Mark hooked! HA!) 

*Usually we're in bed by 10-11pm (I forgot how wonderful it is to go to bed before midnight and actually get more than 5-6 hours of sleep!)

Fridays are date nights. Saturdays we usually sleep in (until a whopping 8am, but I'm actually ok with that. Can't waste a precious day!) and then we have something planned, be it projects, a day trip somewhere, a trip downtown for antiquing and lunch, etc. Lately we've started visiting Petsmart Saturday mornings to look at puppies because I am not baby hungry (far from it actually; the thought of having a child right now is frightening. I'm not ready. I am so not ready), I'm puppy hungry! So we agreed that if Mark's next assignment doesn't bring us overseas, we're getting a puppy. HAPPY DAY! I'm been looking at miniature schnauzer puppies for weeks. So cute! 

So, that's that. Being married rocks. I was nervous the transition would be challenging since our entire courtship was long distance, but I think in a weird way, it made the transition very easy. And it helps when your husband is so wonderful, super easy-going and extraordinarily patient with his, at times, high-strung, impatient wife. And I am madly in love with him. I lucked out, majorly.

Pictures of the apartment to come soon!

P.S. Dude! Did you hear? Jimmer is going to the Bulls! Maybe now his career will finally take off. Yesssss! Give him a chance! He's got such potential, I just want to see a bit of the BYU Jimmer in the NBA. He's so talented! Hopefully this is better than the stupid Sacramento Kings. And...baseball season is just around the corner! 

Now off to bake cookies while Mark studies...

Yay it's May!

So. 

Let's recap. 

This may be a long post BUT it has lots of pictures (and yes, a lot of food pics. Don't pretend to be shocked)!!! That means it'll mostly be pictures with my commentary. Muahaha!

Ye have been warned. Birthdays are kind of A HUGE deal for me. The bigger I can make it, the better. My pal Amy had her 24th birthday on the 23rd and the day before I had brilliant ideas poppin' out of my brain cells. I couldn't wait. These are the results:

*Eh hem* FIRST of all friends, let me just say I made my own caramel...WITHOUT a candy thermometer. WHABAM! And it was great! The author of the recipe said I could do it and she was right. Boy I felt like a million bucks. Also I'm glad because otherwise I would have had to make a late night trip to Wally-world (eh...) for caramels to melt (aka the cheapo way). Well, thank goodness it worked. 

 I felt it completely necessary that I "taste test" some so I put it atop some leftover brownies I had in the freezer and then thought, "what the heck?" and topped it with some sea salt and whipped cream, or "keem" as my darling nieces used to call it. Delish friends, DEE.LISH.

Now the point of making the caramel? Well, Amy's favorite candy bar, or one of, is Twix and I had pinned (I will admit, I am a Pinterestaholic. Yup. *no shame*) a homemade Twix recipe months ago and now had a reason to make them! YES! So I made 'em, cut up in attempt to make them kinda, sorta look like Twix bars and then got all crazy (this is what happens when I am scheming, the ideas just FLOOOOOW. It's amazing) and decided to wrap them up so they looked like candies. 

AND THEN. I decided that Twix bars weren't enough, because, like I said, I like to go ALL OUT on birthdays. I decided to make some peanut butter pudding cookies. Amy and I had made these together months ago and I remember us both devouring them so I thought these would be a hit. Instead of peanut butter chips, which I didn't have because I kind of decided to make them on the fly, I just used Reeses Pieces, peanut butter M&Ms, and chocolate chips. 

SOOOO YUMMY! And you know I taste tested that dough about 5 times. I gave her 24 cookies and she was kind enough to share. Mmmmm! 

THEN. And this was the AHA! moment I had right before I left work on Monday and decided to gather all my goods to super surprise Amy on Tuesday: decorate her desk/half of our office. Oh I was bursting with excitement! I got to work super early and decorated and was so nervous she would come in extra early (she always beats me) and I would be in the middle of decorating. Well, as it turns out she was running late and ended up getting in loooong after I had finished. Thank goodness. She was surprised and I was pleased. 

Now we decided to throw a birthday bash on Saturday and I got all crazy and made spinach dip (from a packet but it was from Mark from this fabulous store in Texas!) with homemade pita chips, and, now this is a big deal, guacamole. For the first time. By myself (which means without the guidance of Mark, who showed me how to make it). Now I realize it's not rocket science but I'm a baker, ok? This means I like specific amounts with specific ingredients and clear cut instructions. Cooking is a little more lenient in amounts and ingredients so I was a little nervous making this for the first time, and for a party no less. Fortunately, Mark is amazing and walked me through about 5 times. He even Skyped with me while I made a test batch. Yes he is that awesome. And yes I am pathetic. It's the curse of perfectionism. 

THEN. In my attempts to get back into making dinners more consistently that are a little more wholesome than a PB/honey sandwich, cereal, or a Greek yogurt, I found a super easy salad recipe which involved black beans, corn, romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and a homemade cilantro-lime dressing. Friends, it's off the hook good. I added some spicy tilapia and whoa buddy it was good. YAY for leftovers! 

This shouldn't be anything new but I just am not feeling running as of late. I don't know why. Actually I do. April, well, after April 10th, April and I were not on good terms. No siree. Work sucked the life out of me (you work 3 weeks straight sans a day off and tell me how you feel. Yeah that's what I thought), I was recently asked to be the director of a girls camp my church does every year and usually the director is given this assignment months ago and I have kind of been thrown into the whirlwind of planning (with a mere 2 months to go until camp) while trying to get myself up to speed, plan, etc. etc. etc., while trying to maintain my personal sanity. This is no small task. I believe many of you would say, "Welcome to being an adult" or "Welcome to reality. Yeah well...fine. At least hand me some more cheese for my whining. Provolone preferably. Or sharp Havarti. 

I was talking to Amy, who is running a marathon this weekend and another in Philadelphia in November. I was telling her I didn't really want to run the Myrtle Beach mini-marathon (half marathon; I don't know why they call it a mini-marathon because there is nothing mini about 13.1 miles thankyouverymuch) in October. I didn't like the course and, I donno, just wasn't feeling it. Amy suggested I run the half marathon in Philly when she runs the full. 

DONE. I am slightly more motivated though probably not until after the chaos of June is over. But still. Now I have a goal. AND it's my first distance race. We're making a little trip out of it and driving up with a group of friends, a few others who are running the half and a few coming to cheer us on. I am pumped! And you better believe I will be running up the Rocky stairs! 

Next month this cutie will be back in NH to live with my brother and sister-in-law permanently. I'm a little heartbroken because I love him so, but I think it'll be better for him: more room to run around and two people to care for him. So I busted out his dreaded carry-on bag to get him ready for the flight home. I can already feel my stress level rising. 

Per the request of Amy, I made rolo cookies for her because this week has been a bust for us both. Like I'd turn down a request for cookies and the opportunity to bake. NEVER! 

And now for today. I had yesterday and today off. Yesterday was devoted to errands and today was my fun day. I let my mane go free--and it was windy so I looked like a human Mufasa--and busted out my mint cords and loafers, and you know that means I'm in for some serious fun. 

The fun started with Iron Man 3. Dude. First showing of the day cost me a whoppin' $4.75. That pleased me GREATLY. And hooooooly catscans it was a GREAT flick. Robert Downey Jr. is one of, if not my favorite actor. This role was made for him. Go see it. You will not be disappointed! Then I went to get froyo for lunch. It's been awhile since I had some. I got hazelnut, chocolate, and vanilla froyo and topped it with--ready for this??--chocolate chips, brownie bits, chocolate-covered pomegranate seeds, cocoa puffs (why not??) and topped it off with chocolate jimmies (or for those of you not from New England, chocolate sprinkles). Ooooooh yes I loved it! AND this makes me SO excited to go home in June to a) see Heath and Emma and my New England family and b) go to Lagos, the best ice cream place EVER. I'm drooling already. OHMYLANTUSIMSOEXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then I decided to "pop in" to Anthropologie. Right. Pop in. Ha. I don't shop at Anthro for their clothes. Not quite my style, though cute. I shop for their kitchen stuff, sometimes home stuff, and random books/literature/note pads/writing stuff. I honed in on this cup and plate (pictured left) when I walked and I ended up walking up with that plate because I have an obsession with nautical stuff and therefore I had to have it. I also loved these little ceramic sailboats (pictured right), but what would I really do with them? Eh. Not worth $24. But still cute. 

LOVED this tape dispenser.  

And my eyes popped out of my head a little when I saw these AH-dorable sticky notes. And hello! There were 480 in there! But I told myself I have enough stationary/sticky notes (For now. But that's a lie. It was a tactic to talk myself out of them and it worked...this time). 

 Then I got home and the top I had ordered for my new bathing suit had arrived!!! My new suit is ready! Now, woman to woman--or hey if you're a man, woman to man but let's face it, what I am about to tell you is probably more exciting and understood by a woman--I had to order a smaller size in my bathing suit bottom. Yeah. I almost died with happiness. You know that feeling right? Oh yes. AMAZING. 

Now. May I please just tell you how much I adore my brothers. I can't even tell you. There are no words except to say I am the luckiest sister ever. I love and adore and admire these fine men. They are some of the best friends I will ever have. 

Heath (on the left) graduated from Brigham Young University the end of April in Electrical Engineering (WAHOO!!!!!), was accepted to the University of New Hampshire's law program, and got a scholarship. I am SO freakin' proud. And I get to see him and his fabulous wife in a month. We're going to have some serious sibling time. I CANNOT wait. 

Dane (on the right) is rockin' and rollin' as a missionary for our church--The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He is doing very well and I am SO proud of him. You can read about his experiences and adventures here.  

Finally, OneRepublic came out with a new album in March and friends, it is AAAMAZING. I LOVE IT. Michael Buble also came out with a new album in April, but, to be honest, I like OneRepublic's better, at least right now. And I found a really cool recipe for homemade rosemary soft pretzels. I think I'll give 'em a try tonight. And I thumbed through a macaroon recipe book at Barnes and Noble today (and used my iPhone to snap some of the recipes; does that make me a bad person? I did't want the whole book!), and I think I might try to make some macaroons tonight, or tomorrow. Hmm...baking and listening to OneRepublic? Yup that sounds like a swell evening to me!

The Real Deal

Undoubtedly the week I decide that I need to stop eating so many sweets and am determined and motivated to cut back was the week everyone and their mother brings in stuff and wants me to try it. I can't say no, especially with the eager faces waiting for me to take a bite. So I didn't. My colleague is cooking more and made really yummy pumpkin, walnut, chocolate chip cookies. Then my friend Amy invited me over to help her make "Christmas Crack" and of course I said yes. I've never had the stuff but let me tell ya, it lived up to its name.

And for the first time in...I honestly cannot say how long...I ate a real potato chip. THE REAL DEAL. A real Ruffles potato chip. I think my eyes popped out of my head for a second. It was to die for. Salt, fat, crunch. Mmmm baby it was good. Well "Christmas Crack," at least the recipe we used, is made up of potato chips, melted chocolate chips, peanut butter, and usually whipped cream but we forgot that part. Oops. It didn't look too appealing (kind of like no bake cookies) but boy of BOY OH BOY is it tasty!!! Amy brought some to work and Britney and I nearly inhaled the entire bag throughout the day. DELISH. 

And in other news...

I was in California for 8 days to visit my parentals. It was the best vacation to date. I went to Monterey, Pebble Beach, Carmel, San Francisco, Sausalito, Oakland, Alamo, Danville, and Napa Valley. I'm not a huge fan of the western climate. I've lived in a few places in the west and none terribly appealing to me, though certainly not lacking in their own unique beauty, but it just didn't do it for me. Northern Cali is a whole different story, at least the parts I went to. BEAUTIFUL. I loooooved San Francisco. LOVED IT. All of the places I went to were so pretty. Boston ranks, always and forever, as my favorite U.S. city, but San Francisco is a close second, though you can't even begin to compare the two. But I love them both and found myself very comfortable with San Francisco. More on the trip later...

Back to this week. I was reunited with my pooch last Sunday after 9 days of being apart. I can't lie. The break from responsibility was nice, but having this little man do his snort dance and high-pitched "I'm-so-excited-to-see-you" bark, made my heart melt. He's a little furry and getting groomed tomorrow. Gotta get fancy for Christmas break! 

During one of my walks with Scotty, I found the most perfect autumn leaf, don't you agree? 

I carefully placed it in my pocket and kept feeling for it to make sure it hadn't fallen out and was safe. I've pressed it and hope the colors don't fade into ugly blah hues as a few of the other leaves I've tried to press did. Also, it's been cold and rainy and gloomy here. Not gonna lie, I'm a fan. It makes it feel like it's the holiday season and heading into winter. I appreciate each of my seasons. If only it was snow, just a little dusting!!! Probably not here in the south, but hopefully we'll get some snow while I am home in New England. Pleaseohpleaseohplease!!

 I've decided that I need to cook more and bake less. I often come home from work and find that I am bored with my "quick, easy" dinner choices of eggs and toast, PB and jelly, turkey and cheese sandwiches, grilled cheese, etc. because either I've had some of these things already for breakfast or lunch, or I don't want to repeat, or I need something a little more substantial. However, I have a few confessions and issues. Cooking is not as exciting for me as baking. But that's also not fair to say or compare the two because I'm also better at baking and I've baked a whole lot more than I have cooked. Secondly, I can handle most leftovers for up to 3 days and then I'm done. I just can't do it. Thirdly, I get bored of the same old things all of the time so I have to vary my recipes up, and, you know, cooking for one isn't exactly easy when I don't want a ton of leftovers but I do want to eat healthy and stretch my dollars. See?? A dilemma!!!! Naturally, I headed to Pinterest to begin the search for some easy recipes. Well, I was actually on Facebook and one of my pals had posted a picture of homemade English muffins so I clicked the picture and link and ended up at the blog site that has forever changed my life: 

http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/

She is my hero. She has a bazillion recipes and breaks them down by COST per meal and per serving (I'm a numbers girl so this is like striking gold!!!!!) and her recipes are wicked easy but delicious, wholesome, and reasonable (both in amount of ingredients, because anything over 10 ingredients gets nixed, and for price). I decided to make roasted vegetable burritos this week and friends, for the love, they are faaab!!! I made 13 burritos for a whopping $20. SHAZAM!!!! I altered her recipe a little: medium whole wheat tortillas instead of large white flour ones; brown rice (instant, the boil in a bag kind) instead of white rice; and I added two shredded carrots to the roasted vegets (that's short for vegetables in case you are thinking ???) recipe. Oh. My. Lantus. The roasted vegets were great!!! YUM! I could have eaten a bowl of the veggies alone and been a happy girl. The brown rice said it made 2 cups but it wasn't enough for all 13 burritos, but I didn't care. There were plenty of beans, roasted vegets, cheese, and cilantro to go around. So I popped all 13 burritos in the freezer and now when I want one, I unwrap it and zap it in the microwave. Whabam! Tasty, wholesome, delicious dinner ready to rock. I found 6 more recipes to try in the next couple of weeks. I'm giddy with excitement. Baby steps. Before you know it I'll be whippin' up a Thanksgiving turkey no problem...well...give me a year or two. I've got some cooking confidence to build up.

 I printed a bunch of pictures to frame from my California trip because I need to get serious about decorating my apartment. I refuse to buy frivolous "cutesy" decorations. I read a quote that summarizes my decorating mantra that said something like everything in my home is either usable or I love it. So here are the before and after pictures:

Don't judge. I realize some aren't even and the spaces aren't perfect but I really didn't want it to be too structured. I plan to fill in the gaps with more pictures as life continues. I still have a few pictures that I couldn't find the right frames for and I also didn't one to get everything all at once because that kind of takes the fun out of finding the perfect thing. 

It's pouring, cold, and gloomy out today and so it's the perfect day for baking and cooking! So I made whole wheat oatmeal bread and sweet potato fries. Usually Scotty lays near me or within sight but today I couldn't see him so I called for him and this is what I saw when I looked up. 

Your heart just melted right? It should have. I giggled for about 5 minutes and then sent the picture to my family and then ran over and snuggled with Scotty. He's just the cutest. 

I love bread. I think I've only mentioned this about 158 times since I started blogging but I do. Homemade is the best. I thought I was out of sandwich bread so I measured out the yeast this morning and then went to make sure I had enough whole wheat flour (which I store in the freezer, keeps it fresh longer--fun fact!) and whattayaknow there was a loaf of store bought (eh...) bread. Well, I was already determined and set on having homemade bread in my tummy house so I went ahead and made some! I decided I'd just freeze both loaves buuuut, as you can tell that didn't happen. One got sliced about 38 seconds after I took it out of the oven. Let it cool....haha! Good one. Yummmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!!

So about California. I was there for 8 days so I have a lot to tell you about!!! Thus, I am going to break it down beginning tomorrow, or Tuesday because I have a lot to do tomorrow. Also I signed up for a 10K Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving and now I am kind of not thrilled. I haven't been running as consistently as I think I should be. I took a week off after my half marathon to recover, then I got sick, then I went to California and even though I did go running a few times and we walked a ton while in Cali, it's not quite the same. Oh well. I am not looking to set a record  or anything. I've decided to just run for fun. Maybe I'll surprise myself, but I'm not going to beat myself if I don't cruise through it. My friend Amy, who I am running it with, has been POUNDING the pavement the past couple of weeks, and so I'm a little intimidated to run with her but I already told her she can burn rubber with this race but I'm just going to have fun. I feel about 10x better about that (though my competitive side will likely kick in a bit on race day so we'll see how it really goes). 

So here are a few teaser (I know, I know, I'm cruel!) pictures from my California adventure:

(Of course there is a purpose and a tale to accompany this photo!)

Cheers!