HOARDER~~STOCKPILER??

Today has been a pretty darn boring day!!!  Aren’t ya’ proud of me~~I didn’t say damn.  Ooops~~well I tried?? Well---I did!!!! Even though the sun was out and about…I never stepped food out of my house to enjoy it!!! I guess you would say it was also a pretty depressing day as well!!!! This is how darn boring and depressing it really was!!! I organized my toiletries~~yeah..now my body wash is all together and my razors are all lined up and the toothpaste is....well you get the picture!!!! It was just one of those days where you don’t even care if ya’ stink!!!! You know…where you just lay around and smell yourself and say~~who cares!!! Well…that was ME today!! I even took a few pics to document the monumental event that took place in my linen closet or would you just call it a plastic thing-a-ma-bob-eee!!!! Who cares what the correct name is—it’s a plastic closet like thing that holds my linens and my toiletries!!! So I guess I could call it my lintries plastic closet?? How’s that work for ya’ all???

Look at all the Fusion products~~can ya’ tell that the local CVS had a coupon and extra care bucks(ECB’s) on that brand of products!!! What have I become~~a HOARDER!!!! I watch that on TLC~~

See—I have all my facial and skin care products in one little plastic container—yeah that’s a plastic container insider a BIGGER plastic container. Shut-up…I have a container problem!! Or so..that is what my mother tells me.

Ok—now you know that I am in some serious $@!%.  I have over 8 bottles of Pantene.  How much can one woman that doesn’t even go out of her house need to wash her hair!!! I may wash my hair every 3 days or so—NO that is not gross!!  I am not doing anything strenuous so why would I need to wash that $100.00 dye job down the drain!! I am on a budget here folks~~conserve is the magic word!! What?? I am talking about conserving and power buying in the same paragraph!!! Well—this is how it all works.  You get the CVS flyer a week in advance and then you have your husband run down to the local gas station and purchase 2 papers(yeah…I said 2 because I need double the coupons—its all about conserving…give me a few more sentences and it will all make sense!!!)  Then I match up the coupons with the deals that have ECB’s from CVS and it’s like getting it for free.  They tell me it is called “STOCKPILING”.  Oh my word..what is happening to me?? I have to go~~

NO fry~~country fried steak!!!

This is the perfect recipe for the working mom who needs to get a tasty dinner on the table and it’s also wallet friendly tA~boot!!!  The versatility here is endless…a person could use ground turkey, beef, deer, chicken or pick up a package of chopped steak.  This was a staple recipe in our house when I was growing up because we had so many mouths to feed and we always had the ingredients on the shelf.  See~~there was a such a thing as 30 minute meals back in the day…it just wasn’t on the food network!!! The best part is…it really does taste good~~really it does…I am tellin’ ya the truth!!! it may not look the best but your taste buds will rejoice when they get the first bite!!! Yeah—I see the greeeeezzz on the top—now remember…I didn’t say figure friendly.  This picture was also taken when I very first took the dish out of the oven!!! you have to mix things up a bit!!!! The amazing thing with this NO fry country fried steak is…graveee!  Yeah daddeeeo~~graveeee!!!

This is the Bomb babeee~~the bomb!!! Put a little mashed potatoes on a plate and spoon this over the top and your in heaven.  The sides with this could be any number of things from the frig or pantry---carrots, green beans, rice, peas~~you name it and you could have a great meal. 

The secret to this recipe is a few cans of cream of mushroom soup—can ya believe it?? cream of mushroom soup.  I can tell ya a few meals you never knew existed that we ate with cream of mushroom soup.  that’s for later!!! now ya’ take that ground meat that you have added a little salt and pepper to and patty it out into little weird looking shapes. that’s it folks…simple and easy~~now you could kick things into high gear and add some other spices and you get a whole new taste!!!

whaluwhalubingbang!!!

you have dinner!!!!

BEAUTIFUL gifts~~~

This post is about a beautiful lady that I am privileged to say is my friend.  She is one amazing woman and can create even more amazing gifts!!! I only wish I had 1/4 of her creative talent and I may be making some extra money on the side!! However—that’s simply not the case when it comes to my art!!! I am lucky that you are able to tell the difference between the boy and girl stick figures that I draw for baby Jack!!!! Here she is folks~~

Corinne Lineman in all her glory~~~fantastic woman!!!

This is my first Christmas cactus~~so I am praying to mother nature that I don’t kill the poor thing!!! It looks pretty darn good so far!!! The blooms have already come and gone so we will have to wait on those beauties to make an appearance this time next year!!! Now—the Christmas bulbs are what I am really writing this post about!!! The amazing art work that this woman puts into these tiny little glass bulbs is nothing short of a miracle.  The bigger bulb was my gift from last year and the 2 smaller babies are from this year!!! I just had to show you both!!!!

This one is of SanDee and all her glory!!! Just look at the detail on that picture!!! It is just~~~well…words just can’t tell ya!!!

That is my beautiful KaDee~~she has on her beautiful red Christmas collar!!! I am tellin’ ya here folks—this woman doesn’t miss any detail!!!

This is SanDee in the snow with her beautiful Christmas halter!!! The camera couldn’t capture the life that these gifts have given to me but at least you get a little glimpse of them!!! I will be gingerly wrapping these up and storing them away for next years tree!!! However—these little glass treasures will never really be put away as long as long as I am alive...because they are tucked away in my heart!!!! Thanks so much Corinne~~~love you!!!!

Depressed~~Limbo~~Let Down???

You know what I am talking about and don’t pretend that you don’t!!!  The weird feeling that you get after the last shred of wrapping paper falls to the ground and your stomach is about to burst open from all the high caloric foods that you have been inhaling the last few days!!! This funky feeling just keeps lingering over you—because let’s face it~~you really can’t do anything yet because in just a few more days you will be celebrating the arrival of 2011!!! There will be food, friends, family, and probably some more stinkin’ gifts from those of your family that you have yet to see. If you don’t know the freeeekish weird feeling that I am writing of---then consider yourself lucky and go on about your merry little way!!! However—if your human and you know that creeeepeeee feeling that is overtaking you brain and your mood swings then here is a little picture to cheer ya’ up!!!! 
Is she just the picture of happiness and joy~~don’t push it WenDee~~we are all working on it!!!

Can I Tell Ya’ How Much He LOVES~~

If you ask Rob about our dog KaDee~~he will mumble something along the lines of “I didn’t want a dog or See what did I tell ya’, they are work?” Well let me just show you a little picture or 2 or 3 and then I will tell ya’ the story and you decide how much he LOVES her!!!!

She doesn’t have to lift her leg—he does it for her!! Oh my—he has got it bad!!! While I am on this ding-dong-dang subject~~who do you think gets to give her the 2 shots a day!!!?? Well—here is what I was told---“don’t give her the shot around the time I come home because she will associate me coming home with the shot!!!” Oh my word~~can it just tell ya’ I thought I was gonna’ pee my pants on that one!!!!!

This is the story behind the pics~ When it snows enough to rub KaDee’s belly---these little snowballs attach to her hair.  Well…they make her cold when she comes in and they drive her crazeeee because she can’t get the off!!! So—here daddy tells her to get on the bed and he will get the hair dryer!! Believe it or not..not that I really care if you do believe me~~because it is facts here folks!!! She runs and gets on the bed and puts all 4’s in the air!!! He turns on the power and she is in 7th heaven!!! Now back to the question~~do ya’ think that he loves this little girl?? I can tell ya’ that if I put up all 4’s he wouldn’t be getting the hair-dryer…he would toss me a towel!!! LOL!!! Not really—but that’s a post~~for…well—not this blog!!! I try to keep it at the very least PG-13!!! Remember I do use a little foul language!!!

Now—does that look like one happy little girl~~~her daddy’s love is the best!!! He loves her to the moon and back!!! Yes—I know the pictures are not so great!!! Remember—florescent lighting is not so great!!!!

Well…We Got The “BIG” One

Here is the famous “RIFFE” rock—well I like to think it is famous!!! Now you on the other had may just see it as~~well~~a rock!! However—if you read my prior post you will see why this rock is so important to me and how it has morphed into becoming famous!!!  Normally you can see our name—and the date of our marriage(oh what a blessed day..LOL) and then a big horseshoe!!!! Everything is covered except the tops of the horseshoe.  So…I am considering this the “BIG” one because we don’t normally get this much snow.  School is usually out with just a snickle on the top of the famous rock!!

Here is when I know that Matthew has turned into a man!!!! He gets up and goes out to feed his animals and check on the neighbors animals~~he is house sitting and animal sitting!!! Now—in middle school I would have had to raise 7 kinds of HELL to get him up and out of bed to do this kinda’ thing!! (ooops did I just cuss..sorry if I have virgin ear readers—I will just tell ya’ here and now—this would not be the blog for you so just go ahead and click that big red X!! Shit—go on and do it!!!) OK…OK… Back on track~~~Now he gets up on his own and eats and goes about his marry way and momma is in bed asleep!!! OOOPS—if your mommy of the year this would also not be the blog for ya’ to expose yourself to!! I am sorry—but I don’t want to mislead anyone here or get them addicted to my fantastic writing. Well—back to the picture~~if you look at the image in the truck…that is my little man!!

Bring on the SNOW~~we are ready!!! I now have 2 men here to help me dig out!!!!

Am I a “SCHOOL GIRL” or 40??

 

I know that if your taking the time to read this blog entry your well aware of my health dilemma!!! You know that I am not working and really don’t need to know if it’s gonna’ snow!! However~~last night I couldn’t stop myself from checking the weather channel!! First on the IPhone and when that didn’t look just right I flipped to WSAZ to check and see what Tony had to say, after all he is the CHIEF METEROLOGIST~~when his radar still showed a gap in the snow right over Scioto county I went to the computer!!! Go figure~~like it was going to change from one form of technology or media to the next!!!LOL!!! Well~~I was up before SanDee this morning waiting with anticipation for that phone call!!! Isn’t technology just grand~~I don’t even have to touch my toe to the cold floor to find out if Matthew has school!!! Well….guess what??? It came @ 5:15 this morning and for the life of me I couldn't go back to sleep!!! I thought I was gonna pee the bed because this was the first snow day of the school year!!!!

hip-hip-hurrah!!!

As you can see for the picture above there is really not a lot of the white stuff but just enough to keep the bright yellow buses off the road!!! So~~I get up and watch the news!! Watching to see if other school SUPERS got a brain and canceled their districts!! GUESS WHAT!!! Most of them did!!! However—I would like to give them a few pointers~~if it’s snowing when ya’ go to bed at 11:00 pm and the temp is only going to go down~~use some common sense and close the schools then!!! It’s just so much better—you don’t have to go thru all this jazzzzz!!!

I’m going to be honest will all of you and tell you the truth.  I am not of school age but simply a school teacher at HEART!!! So—when snow arrives I am also getting a snow day or at least a glance into my past!!! 

This scene is the best part~~~a beautiful memory!!!

Death by “CAKE”

I am telling you that I have been on this baking kick!! I just had to make a chocolate cake with chocolate icing!!! I mean---can you have tooooo much chocolate?? I think not?? Now that we have that question covered lets get to the “CAKE”!!!

Take a nice long look at that icing!!! MMMM~~chocolate butter cream!!! Death for me!!! This really could be the death of me!!! I can eat this entire cake in one sitting and then my belly would swell up and???? If you doubt me…here is another picture of the icing!!! This one is a nice close up!!!

Remember—I am under florescent lights so these pictures will vary in depth of color!!! SORRY!!!! If you are reading this blog post you are a very near and dear person to me.  Just send me an email and I will bake you one of these cakes!!! I won’t be held accountable if you eat the entire cake in one sitting.  It could be the “DEATH” of you!!!

IRON~man!!!

Hey~~have I told ya’ that I have a new “IRON” man in the kitchen!! He is a really good helper and is so “BIG” and “STRONG” that I can’t imagine the kitchen without him!!! I mean he has made kitchen activities so much fun that I can’t hardly tear myself away from his big strong “IRON” grip!!! I am tellin’ ya’ this big boy is a two hander!!!!

Here he is!! See~~I told ya’ that he was a 2 hander!!! I sure hope that you were thinking what I was thinking??? I mean, can you see your kitchen without one of these bad boys!!!??? Well, I sure can’t!!!! Trust me on this one people!!! Get one and you will never go back to Teflon again!!!!

Just look at the ring of KRISPEEE goodness around the edges and the soft warm dense center of this pone of cornbread!! The way that only an “IRON” man can create!!! I would never give this bad boy up~~I think that if there were a fire I would run straight out of bed and hit the pegboard looking for my “IRON” man!! Now..mind ya!!! I would be stark naked but this here skillet is big enough to cover the important parts!!!! Seriously!!!!

Cookies…Cookies and More COOKIES!!

Every year at this time I make these one special cookies.  They are a dream to eat but not such a dream to make!!! Time consuming and not such a friendly cookie on the wallet.  That’s ok~~Rob paid for it!!! Shhh….don’t tell him.  I will do that after he eats 2 or 3 and he won’t be a bit mad!!! Remember—the way to a man’s heart is thru his stomach.  I believe that to be a fact.  OK, back on subject~~COOKIES and not just any cookie but these little butter coins!!!  I have a 17 year old who has reminded me at every opportunity that it is the beginning of December and times a tickin’ for those little cream dream wafers!! He puts a little twist on the request by adding in a little guilt. He reminds me that I have not been up to making them the last few years thinking that I will get right on it!!! YES!!! It worked~~

Here they are!!!!!

Green icing~~for Christmas!! I mean the tree is usually green so I grabbed it!! Not to mention that it was the first one I saw and I didn’t want to dig thru all of the baking clutter to get to the other colors!!! Sorry but it is the “TRUTH”.

Look at that sugar~~OH YEAH BABEEE!!! This is what Christmas is all about!! Sugar----

These little creameee dreameee butter crispeee wafers deserve the best presentation so I pulled our all the stops!!! I put them on a nice high pedestal cake stand.  Do ya’ blame me?? I really think your answer will be~~NOPE!! Remember…these only make an appearance in our house during the Christmas season!!!!  Not that you really want to see the icing bowl but I am gonna show you because this is not just any icing!!!! This is BUTTER cream icing!!! BUTTER—I am talking lots of butter.  Not as much as I put in the cookies but I had to leave some for the toast in the morning!!! What would I put with my honey!? These are the important decisions that I have to make on a daily basis. 

MMMMM~~worth money in your pocket and it’s green!!!  See being lazeee pays off!!! It fits right in with my blog post!!!!

Sweet or Salty??

How ‘bout both all in one stick!!!???  Here is what I worked on after the snow inspired me to warm our tummies.  I love both sweet and salty so here it is~~~

Now—ignore the wrinkled background!! I was so stinkin' proud of the creativity I used—in poking the pretzel rods down in the bakers rack.  I had my honey come in and hold up a nice festive red tea-towel!! Well..I got news for ya’...I am not ironing a dad-gum tea-towel!!! Sorry—just over look it and and see my genius creativity!!!!

Mommy “GUILT”

Well~I thought that I would only feel the “MOMMY GUILT” with my one and only born son.  However…today I found out that is simply not the case!!! During our visit to the vet this morning I found out that my sweet baby girl KaDee Jo has diabetes.  I just can’t believe it~~first thing that I wanted to know was if it was my fault because I didn’t feed her the best food or too much of it or something like that!!!?? However my mind is at rest because the vet assured me this was simply not true and to stop feeling guilt!! This is just something that older wiser puppies get and especially Schnauzers.  Since KaDee Jo is 1/4 Poodle, 1/4 Maltese and 1/2 Schnauzer she is just more prone to developing diabetes. Here are a few pics of our traumatizing morning.

Look at her bone printed band-aid!!! So sweet!!!

She is milking it for all it’s worth!! As she should because he is going to be given 2 injections a day!! Oh—Kadee this is gonna hurt mommy more than it is you!!!! WHAAA!!!  Shot update to come!!!! I am sooooo dreading this needle              thing-a-ma-bobie!!!

Snow~Chicken Noodles~Biscuits~ and Warmth

This weekend we had some very cooold snowy weather!!! So…being the super cook that I am(not really) decided we needed to warm our tummies with some“HOT” comfort food.  I decided to take some pictures of our little food adventure!!!

Doesn’t the view look so beautiful!! I just love snow…but after Christmas I am totally over it!!!

These here biscuits were kinda small but they actually tasted pretty good!! If ya’ look close at the 2nd picture you can see how flakeeee they really are!!! I think that these were pretty stinkin’ good considering that they were the first little fellars that I made totally on my own.  So~~I told the boys’ to eatem’ and shut up!!!

Look at that~~noodles enveloped in chicken stock, carrots, celery and homemade egg noodles.  That “homemade noodles part” was a lie but don’t tell on me~~pleeeeeze!!!!!

Look at those super rich smashed potatoes with big chunks of potato and the skins.  I loaded them up with sour-cream, sea salt, freshly ground pepper and a splash of whole milk!!! Mmmm~~ultra comfort in that pot!!!

This is reality here people~~~2 biscuits on the bottom then piled with corn and loaded with smashed potatoes.  Now—just when you thought it wouldn’t get any better the chicken goodness is ladled over the top.  We smell…eat…pile on the couch in a food comma!!!  It’s the best thing to cure the winter blaaahs!!!!  Well…I guess a little sugar is in store.  That’s a post for tomorrow!!! Stay tuned!!!!

Semi~Homemade with WenDee Lee

I just can’t believe that I am actually gonna write about these cookies!! They are so easy that I don’t even feel as if they constitute as baking!! So—I am thinking of Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee this is giving me the confidence to make it thru this thing!!! Do ya know the show?? Well if not, you need to do some watching of the Food Network…otherwise know as FN!!!! Sandra is a master at taking everyday foods and kickin’ it up a notch or 2 or sometimes 3!! The 3 would be stretchin’ it just a bit but I can tell ya that it has happened.  Ok—semi part here is the Duncan Hines cake mix—yeah that’s it!!!! I am tellin’ ya that when you eat these cookies your loved ones will never—ever—ever know that a pre-packaged food item was used in the making of this culinary delight!!!

Ok~~now for the low-down on these little chocolate ruby filled nugget drops. My sister decided to use a chocolate fudge Duncan Hines cake mix and cherry flavored chips!! She knows that I love anything with cherry in it so…she thought I just might have a hankerin’ for something chocolaty, sweet and cherry!!! Guess what folks—I sure did!!! As soon as I smelled these cookies my tongue was waggin’. 

This is what they looked like before she put them in the over!! There is parchment paper under these puppies for easy removal and NO clean-up!! I am repeating that again—NO clean-up!!!!! That is AWESOME and FANTASTIC all rolled into one ball of parchment paper.

Take a gander at that cookie~~the cherry chip melts a little but still remains in somewhat of a contained area.  Did that make sense~~I think not but I am not changing it.  The longer the post the better it looks!! Gotta think up things to embellish this thing!! This blog has gone public here folks!!!

These cookies do look a little flat but it’s a double delight for the palate.  You get the crunch on the outside of the cookie with the chewy softness on the inside.  Very good cookie~~have I mentioned that I like these cookies and they are semi-homemade.   

Now—let me tell ya that you can use any flavor of boxed cake mix and if your not a Duncan Hines kinda’ gal you can use whatever makes ya happy.  Feel free to throw a few handfuls of nuts and any flavor of chips.  Or skip the chips for all I care but whatever you do make these sometime—today—now.  You will be pleasantly surprised. 

Oh---one more thing~~if your reading this post…do you think that maybe Sandra Lee should have me on her show.  It sounds pretty neat and catchy—Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee and WenDee Lee.  I think I am gonna contact FN about the possibility of a new show.

Cake Mix Cookies

1 package DH cake mix(or brand of your choice)

2 large eggs

1/2 cup butter(or margarine if your into the fake stuff)melted

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup chips(choc., white, CHERRY, butterscotch, semi-sweet)

1/2 cup chopped nuts of your choice

PREHEAT: oven to 350

PLACE cake mix, eggs, melted butter, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large bowl. STIR with spoon until thoroughly blended.  STIR in chips of your choice and nuts of your choice. DROP by level measuring tablespoonfuls onto greased baking sheets. BAKE at 350 for 12 mints. for chewy cookies and 14 mints. for crispy cookies. REMOVE to cooling racks.  COOL completely. STORE in airtight container. 

I copied this straight from the side of the cake box!!!!!