Lately: November 2014

Happy Sunday from two warm and cuddly Chihuahuas! This is truly how these guys like to enjoy the weekends. Curled up in their favorite spots. Happy as little furry clams :)

I thought I would squeeze in a little weekend post here. I've been overflowing with food ideas lately, and haven't been thinking much about the in-between. But I do have a life outside that wonderful kitchen of mine. I read books in between batches of cookies. Scatter bird seed while concoctions are chilling. Or roasting. Or cooling. I run to get my creative juices flowing. I kind of wish there was an invention to dictate what goes on in my brain while I'm running, because I write some of my best stuff as my feet pound the pavement. A new techie idea perhaps? C'mon, doesn't anyone from Apple read my blog? Hehe. 

Anyhoo, it's been a great weekend thus far. The hubby actually had a 3 day weekend of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We don't get these traditional weekends very often! We took full advantage last night by getting together with one of our couple friends. We watched the first half of the Oregon game (Go Ducks!) and sipped margaritas before heading out for Mexican food. There may have been a tad too much tequila last night, but eh, life is short. I'm currently hard at work on pie crust, my first batch yesterday having been a dud. Rest assured, by the time this pie is completed, I'll have lots of "don't's"! I made a new batch of dough that chilled overnight, so I'm soldiering forward today. Fingers crossed. 

I hope everyone is having a relaxing weekend so far. I've got a few pictures to share of what we've been up to lately-

Haloti curled up in the hubby's sweatshirt. If you leave clothing on the furniture, the Chihuahuas will find it. 

The affair continues. It's been going on for almost 4 years now. We are venturing into common-law marriage territory at this point. 

My beautiful new FoodSaver! It arrived last week and I am so thankful! I literally squealed with joy when the UPS guy left it at my house. Thank you Mom and Dad! There was no hesitation- Out went the old FoodSaver, and in its place went the new. Immediately after getting the new machine set up, I sat down to write my totally overdue big-box store grocery list. 

Ah, the fruits of my labor. I picked up loads of chicken, ciabatta rolls, and bacon in bulk to freeze at aforementioned big-box store. And what did I do as soon as I got home? Vacuumed-sealed it into 2-person portions. I cannot say it enough, I LOVE that machine. I cannot live without it. Love it. 

So, I've been using FoodSavers for 8 years now. I do have a common-law marriage with my FoodSaver! :)

I think this poor little dude flew into either the side of the house, or the living room window. I heard a soft thud, but not the hard thud that usually kills these kids. I went outside and looked on the ground, and didn't find anything. However, when I went to empty my compost buckets, I found him sitting on our large composters. And he didn't move. He did let me pick him up, though. I was having the hubby set up a nesting box on the front porch for him to recover in when he decided he'd rested enough, and he took off. 

I'm just glad he ended up being ok :)

The snow everyone was so worried about getting around our parts. Can you even see this dusting? Not especially. 

Contrary to popular belief, not everything I cook winds up on the blog. Sometimes the recipes are too awful. Sometimes, the recipes are too good, like this Garlic, Lemon, and Fresh Herb Stuffed Chicken.  This bird never made it onto the blog because the hubby and I devoured it. I mean, we really scarfed this one down. All before I took an after photograph. Oh well. A similar recipe may make it onto the blog someday. That is, if I can keep my hands off of it long enough. 

Cheese enchiladas that never made it on the blog. I'm still playing with my chile gravy recipe, and I don't get to play very often. The gravy on these ended up being too heavy, too thick, and too salty. The hubby is not the biggest enchilada lover, so I only get a shot at this one every couple of months. I hope I perfect this recipe in 2015, though. That will be one of my New Year's resolutions.

Asian Roasted Asparagus. What can I say? Also scarfed down without many pictures.

Broccoli and Chard Garlic Spaghetti. This recipe may still make it onto the blog, however I wasn't 100% satisfied with the pictures. It was delicious, don't get me wrong. It might take a repeat making with new pictures for me to publish it, though.

The hubby and I's favorite tequila we brought back from Mexico. I love this stuff! We broke it open last night for Oregon's last home game of the season. It must have been a good luck charm, because the Duck's pulled out the win! The hubby and I were happy campers. We were told by an employee at duty-free in the Cancun Airport that they only sell this tequila in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City. He tried to talk us into buying a more expensive tequila that they only sell in Mexico, but we quickly informed him we didn't live anywhere near any big city and this was the bottle we wanted. I highly recommend trying this tequila if you ever see it anywhere. It makes the BEST margaritas.

Cue to the internet razing. Nickelback snuck a brand-new album out on Monday with absolutely no publicity. I had no idea they were even working on a new album. Some fan I am, right? Anyway, once I discovered their new album, I snapped it up. I've been listening to it on repeat. For days. Multiple times a day. I love running to this album. Most of the album has a really funky beat running though it and combined with Chad's voice, well, I've been tearing down miles. Well maybe not tearing them down, I did take a month off running. And lost a ton during that month. I really don't care that everyone hates Nickelback, I'm definitely not a person who follows the crowd anymore. That's one thing I love about getting older- the sheer inability to really care what other people think of your Nickelback addiction :) #iamunashamed

Here's my lazy morning. Finishing off one of my library books while loving my morning coffee. And pretty soon, I'll be rolling out my 2nd batch of pie crust dough. Oh man, oh man, I hope it's not crumbly!

I hope you all are having a lovely weekend! Ciao!

Striking A Balance

Hello old friend!

It's been way too long since we last met!

Yesterday I decided it was time to get back on the horse. It had been a couple weeks (at least 2) since I worked out and I was starting to feel... flubber-y. It's hard to motivate yourself to workout when you have little energy to do anything.

I was a little nervous that yesterday would be painful. Instead, it felt wonderful! The minute I stepped on the elliptical and begun to shake out my under-used muscles, I went into the zone. I powered through my circuit training and felt like a million bucks.

I was reminded as I zoned out, enjoying my playlist of my favorite Nickelback songs, how much balance working out provides me. It's my time to let my mind relax. But it also reminded me how important sleeping is to feeling healthy. 2 weeks ago, when I was smack dab in the middle of insomnia, I was struggling to make it through a 15-minute cardio circuit. Not the case yesterday, as I easily made it through 3 15-minute cardio circuits.

Then again, maybe it was the pasta salad I had for breakfast :)

After my workout, I sat down on the couch to rest for a minute and was joined by my little Mama's Boy-

This is the 2nd time I've caught that crazy tongue on camera! Such a cutie!

Album Review: Nickelback's Here and Now

Nickelback's "Here and Now"

Nickelback is one of my most favorite bands. I take a lot of crap for liking them too. People everywhere have nothing but bad things to say about them. Well, guess what? I. Don't. Care. Detroit's online petition to have Nickelback NOT perform at the Thankgiving game against Green Bay? Laughable. It's true. People can say what they want to say, but I think Nickelback's album and concert sales speak for themselves.
This is their 7th album and I think it is what Nickelback fans have come to expect. The album is a combination of hard rock, rock ballads, and their typical pop songs that will probably be released on the radio. Most of Nickelback's pop music, I don't like. "How You Remind Me", "Photograph", and all their socially concious songs i.e. "If Everyone Cared", "If Today Was Your Last Day", and "When We Stand Together" are in my opinion the songs Nickelback releases to get pop hits. What I like about Nickelback is their hard rock. I fell in love with their "All The Right Reasons" album after hearing "Follow You Home", "All The Wrong Reasons", and "Next Contestant". My favorites on the "Dark Horse" album are the hardest hitting, "Burn It To The Ground", "Something In Your Mouth", and "Shakin' Hands". This latest album is no different for me.
The album opens with what is probably my new favorite song, "This Means War". I love, love, love the punch it packs. My next favorite on the album is definitely "Kiss It Goodbye", a hard rock anthem exploring the difference between the East and West Coasts. This album also has the typical Nickelback ballads and slow songs. I find that I actually like "Lullaby", a song that speaks to anyone going through a rough time. The song on the album that I think is most likely to be a pop hit is either "Lullaby" or "Don't Ever Let It End". "Don't Ever Let It End" I also surprisingly like. The lyrics are sweet and Chad's voice flows melodically on it.
All in all, it is a good album. Nothing has really taken the place as my favorite as "All The Right Reasons", but if you like Nickelback, you will like this album.