Armed with Cheesecake and Vodka, World Watch Out, I'm Back!

Don't get me wrong I love the snow. It is the idiots who are out driving in it that I can do without. I was on my way back from Baltimore this morning and I could have taken an entire roll of film of cars that were stuck in the ditch. I am gathering that they were going too fast, or when they felt them selves sliding they increased the speed instead of chilling out for a minute. Hopefully no one was hurt and this was one of those weekends that I am glad Bryant is grounded from driving.

No I am not going to talk about losing your hair, or forgetfulness. I am not going to mention the fact that our bladders grow weaker and we are in bed by 9pm. I am not talking about an AARP membership or free senior specials. I am talking about when our parents die. Many people I know have lost a parent at a young age, but since I have turned 40 I have seen many friends go through the death of a parent. When you are an infant you rely on everything from your parent. Your clothing, your cleanliness, your nutrition and love that comes from your parent. You thank your parents for this by throwing up on them, maybe throwing up in their mouths, peeing on them, keeping them up late at night and screaming at the top of your lungs. Then you turn an age where you start walking, everywhere. You think that you can climb every rock, every mountain and run through every road. You are everywhere from morning till nighttime. Your parent is there to guide you, protect you and make sure you have just...

A blogging friend of mine wrote about her busy Thursday and she preached for people to lather on the sunscreen. To make sure you apply it to your children. Words to live by and I am passing them on. Wear a hat, be careful out there. Protect your children with what you can protect them with... suncreen I remember the days of going to friends houses after school and mixing a concoction that would surely give us a fast tan. Ingredients would be olive oil, baby oil and other stuff... we would put sun-in in our hair and then go to the pool and wait for magic to happen. Well I didn't have to apply this because with my olive skin I would tan right away and I was alway proud of my tan, I would never sunburn. My mother used to tell me that she would rub crisco on her skin to get a tan. Granted the sun wasn't as bad then so they say, and they were in the process of destroying our ozone, so they really didn't know the ill's of doing what they were doing. From the Chicago T...

Hot Crab Dip Recipe: 2 packages 8 oz of softened cream cheese ½ container of sour cream Few (3 generous) shakes of garlic salt 1 TBS (or to taste ) Old Bay Seasoning 2 TBS Lemon Juice 2-3 tsp Worcestershire Sauce 1 tsp mustard 4 TBS mayonnaise 1 Cup Shredded cheddar cheese 1 container (16 oz) of crabmeat (I use the Phillips brand at Costco) Combine all ingredients except the crabmeat. Once well combined, gently fold in crabmeat (so you keep the lump crabmeat). Spray a deep dish pie plate, quiche pan or any shallow 2 qt. casserole dish with non-stick spray and pour mixture into the baking dish. Sprinkle Old Bay on top and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until mixture bubbles around the sides of the dish. Enjoy with crackers, Fritos of your favorite dipper. :-)

Any of you out there with teenage boys? Then you know what I am going through. Not much else going on, I made some awesome stuffed mushrooms last night. Everyone ate them too fast so I could not take a picture.

That is how I fell as of lately and I have so much to blog about that I have no idea what to blog about first. I still have pictures of the three day that I have not posted yet! So I am going to work backwards, starting with last night's holy cow moment. Okay that is over with. No need to share that with the entire world. Sunday - watched football and I had to root for the Saints cuz well, cuz of that kid named Drew Brees, you know how it is.. a QB plays on your team for a season or two and you fall in love.. well, that’s all folks. Oh yea and I stayed out too late!! SATURDAY - Notice the caps. All I can say about that is, "Thank god I am the Master of my own bladder". I could go into details of the day and I wind up having to cough because I am laughing so hard then I have to rush to the bathroom and ensure that I am still the Master. Go get a cup of coffee and sit down and read about Saturday = a brush with uncontrollable bladders. The big B took me to meet Lisa, an avi...

Breakfast Casserole 1-2 Cups diced ham (or 1 lb sausage, browned and drained) 2 Pkgs (6 oz) Betty Crocker Hash Browns 1 medium green bell pepper (diced) 1 TBS instant chopped onion 2 Cups shredded cheddar cheese 3 cups milk 1 Cup Bisquick ¼ tsp Salt 4 Eggs Grease 13" x 9" baking pan. Mix dry ingredients together and pour in the pan. Mix egg and milk and pour over dry ingredients - stir and make sure all ingredients are evenly distributed. Sprinkle additional cheddar cheese on top and Bake at 375 degree oven from 30-35 minutes. If putting together the night before leave off cheese until you're ready to bake. Ann said she adds a little more milk before baking in the morning to make sure it's not dry.

Tater tot casserole.... I make mine different and I thought I would share... 1 lb ground beef 1 package frozen corn minced onion fresh or dried, I used dried. 1 8 oz sour cream (light works fine also) I can of cream of mushroom soup 1 bag of tater tots Velvetta ( half of a large loaf or enough to cover your tater tots) cheddar cheese grated .. for taste... can also be fat freeOKay so I have been manipulating a reciepe I found and I finally got it down..cook 1 lb ground beef, drain and rinse off fat. Add sour cream, onion, corn and cream of mushroom soup. mix and keep on medium heat while prepping the casserole dish. dont use a 13x9 pan, takes too much cheese to cover up. I used the large corning wear casserole dish.. maybe a 8 x 6?? on the bottom I put half a bag of tater tots. Then I placed sliced velvetta cheese over it.. do not make the slices too large because then the dish will be too salty. Then pour the ground beef mixture over the tatertots and velvetta. The you want to put the...

I am hungry explains Mr. Tater M Tot The Blue Jay says You need to start working for your food!

I made chicken and dumps Monday night. I used this recipe from Ourbestbites.com and next time I will not add as much milk, and will always add more chicken! B does not like the dumplings. He doesn't understand old fashioned cooking. He wants to know why you have to have these balls of bread in the soup. He really isn't a big time soup or stew eater either which kills me in the winter time. His favorite soup is Tomato, that should accompany grilled cheese. So go figure. But he did eat some and I made sure that I added an entire rotissere chicken instead of 1 pound this way there was a lot of meat for him to eat. He likes everything seperate and whatever you do, dont tell him the ingredients of a meal. He still has not eaten my spinach dip after watching me make it one day. I never told him it was a healthy meal!

This was very good, I think I preheated the oven too long, and usually when I bake bread I put a pan of water on the bottom rack but this did not call for it. 2 pkgs. dry yeast 1/4 c. lukewarm water 1 3/4 c. skim milk 2 1/2 tbsp. sugar 1 tsp. salt 6 c. sifted flour 2 tbsp. oil 2 c. shredded cheddar 1/2 tsp. dill 1/2 tsp. rosemary 1/2 tsp. thyme 1/2 tsp. basil Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water. Mix sugar and milk together and add to the yeast. To this mixture add salt and 3 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Add oil, cheese, and herbs. Gradually mix in the remaining flour until dough is stiff enough to handle. Knead dough until it is smooth and elastic. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to coat all sides, cover with a cloth and let rise in a warm place until double in size. Divide into 2 equal parts, shape into loaves and place in two 10 x 5 loaf pans. Cover and let rise again until doubled. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 375 degrees and continue baking for 30 m...

Can you say"National Delurker Day"? So if you are reading this I would love it if you would write a comment please!

I have a friend and she is really having a hard time with her daughter and while I am listening to her, I realize how lucky I am to have raised such an amazing man. B came to visit us at the Lodge last night, since we all were consumed with meetings after meetings and seemed like there was no end to the pain, he came up to visit. He stayed for awhile, and he and I chatted about a few serious things that did not contain his laughter, nor his witty wisecracks. His candor was amazing while speaking to me and he was brutally honest, which was so refreshing and allowed me to see inside his soul and how he actually views the world and the people in it. I was amazed at how grown up he seemed through this conversation. We finished talking and he was going to leave and hugging everyone, and my friend asked me when he was walking out the door, "arent you worried about him, or sad that he is growing older"? I thought for minute and smiled, "No, I am not sad nor worried" I said...

Well, I was going to get this book for a friend who had a baby, but now it is all ruined. Yet when I read it again I realize that this women is in need of some therapy and good drugs!!! I was exactly the same way... now I am realizing that I might need some therapy!

Lovely weekend, went by way too fast, but as always was a memorable one. We stayed out way too late on Friday, something that I have not done in a very long time. We got home almost at 3 am, then up early the next day to run amuck around the house then get ready for the "just one more girls" Christmas celebration, everyone picked a name around Thanksgiving and we played secret Santa. It was so much fun! It was a surprise and I for one was trying to figure out who had who, and I am already thinking about next year and how much fun I am going to make it. We then had a 'would you rather' game and that was hilarious, I never saw so many women flipping sides so many times, but it all was in good fun. We then went to the moose and played in the pool tournment, I went home early thank gosh. Today i worked breakfast at the moose, stayed for maybe 10 minutes, went home took a super hot shower, went to the gym, came home, and vegged out the rest of the day! Trimph of a we...

I have lived in Virginia about 7 years now, and I still get lost when I go out of my 5 miles radius. When I lived in San Diego and would get lost, getting home would be easy, I would just head West or smell the beach and yummie salt air and follow it home. Eventually I would find a landmark helping with the rest of the way. Here in Northern VA, there is so much construction going on right now that my landmarks are disappearing. I used to go down this small road through the back of Lorton that would bring me to 123 and my most favorite Starbucks around. Well, I drove down it one day after not being able to get to my favorite barista for awhile, and omg the road CHANGED. I wound up somewhere I never had been before. I called Brian and expressed my concern, while quickly locking my door so the Bunny Man would not attack me. “Hello” says Brian, I say, “you will not believe this but the road has disappeared to fivebucks Starbucks”. He chuckles because he knows how I am driving. He asks the...

This post was inspired by The McMommy Cronicles Very cold here in Northern VA. If it is going to be this cold, I want a wood stove, ample amount of wood and snow, lots of it, not having to work is a plus, I can wear the same sweats and sweatshirts and scarves all the time. Perfect then, otherwise I think I am ready for the bitter cold to be gone. So in the last week during this cold snap I have succumbed to chapped lips, from the wind, many many bottles of moisturizer for my hands that feel like raw sandpaper, if that is even possible, and I have been grazing around the kitchen eating everything in sight. It is not like I am getting ready to hibernate, I will just get up tomorrow and do it again. I have been scouring the internet for soup recipes and trying to find something yummie. No matter what time of the day it is, a nice hot steaming shower is going to be forgotten as soon as you swing back the shower curtain, and once your toes touch the floor, you forget the warmth you felt.

Do Cowboys really look THAT good? Umm yea I think that they do. *swoons*

Okay, so I am warning you in advance not to be drinking any liquid, or chewing something that might inadvertantly make you choke. Went to the gym tonight for an Abs & Back class. It started at 6, went to the grocery store picked up a few things that we needed, since it is so cold outside it would be fine while we were at the gym. Arrived at the gym 25 minutes early so I did a bike race for 20 minutes and the boys went for a run. As the clock started inching closer to the time of DOOM, I started wondering when the last time was that I spent 10 minutes on my Abs let alone thirty minutes. It has been a long time, probably since I was still with K12. I walked in and see a few people larger than me, thank god, but this is Gold's Gym and even at the beginning of the year, I dont see too many larger women in there, which is a shame because they have some excellent classes. Did I mention the Abs and Back ckass? I grab a mat and find a spot on the side, since I was new to the class I di...

Well, the tree is gone, and all of the decorations are packed away but I am sure in a week I will find that one lone Christmas item that did not get packed with the rest of the stuff. I have a broken coffee machine, which had come back to life once so I am hoping that it resurrects itself again and sooner rather than later, the coffee at work has mush to be desired. Anyways – New Years was a blast like it always is. I heard too much of the “this next year is going to be so much better” I also read from people that this next year everything is going to be perfect and how things are going to change and they are going to be happier, healthier and holier than ever. But why? At midnight is there some secret button that is going to be pushed that will turn your sad, depressed self into a winner? Is that same secret button going to help you find a job or find a man? Nope. I think to myself, why wasn't this past year what they wanted it to be? I mean, some things are out of our control,...

January - created this blog, tried to save money by waxing my own eyebrows February - Trip to San Diego, ate lots of mexican food and stayed in an awesome hotel and met Phil! Franconia Moose Pool Tournament, Bus Trip to Coloniel Beach, Fredricksberg, Vienna. went to PF Changs with gals that I met through blogging. That was fun! Read all of the Twillight books. March - registered for the 3-day walk for Breast Cancer, hurt my back and reflected a bit April - Started thinking about my Masters program and what exactly i wanted to focus on. entered my first photo contest and started taking more pictures. May - Bryant got his first job that was taxed. Golf season started, and I posted an I Believe June - started and completely failed at weight watchers, started the Thursday night ritual at the moose. Added Calvin and Tao to the family July - more golf trips, picnic's, bought my awesome sewing machine!!! August - Williamsburg golf tournament!! Shopping, got ready for my picnic that ...