One of my most favorite things...

Time with my baby girl. I have a one year old. It's hard to believe.
It is so easy to get wrapped up in chores or projects or whathaveyou. There are times when I have to remind myself to put everything aside and enjoy every minute because the minutes go by so very fast. Yesterday I pee'd on the on the test stick and today I have a one year old. Crazy!
Today we went for a lovely stroll to the park and then on down the road and back. We played on the swing and the jungle gym, and we picked up leaves and looked at birds.
My girl is a miracle. A gift straight from God. My life will never be the same, fuller now that she is here.
And we leave her in just 5 short days for a mommy daddy trip to the Mayan Riviera. I am so excited to get away with Ray, but I don't want to "get away" from her...just the hustle and bustle of life. Thank the Lord for Facetime!!!!

Pickled Peppered Perfection!

Another day full of accomplishment.
Feels so wonderful!
My Aunty picked up 15 lbs each of carrots and beets from a local farm. I believe it cost her $40.
Sorta made my little bag of carrots feel inferior.
We worked hard. Well Aunty worked really hard and I took lots of sitting breaks and Elliott breaks. It was fun, and we get delicious pickled peppered carrots and pickled beets...YAY!!
My Aunty was trying to not be wasteful so she brought a bunch of carrots from home as well as the giant 15lb bag. Problem with that was the ones from home were not washed so we had to scrub them all down which took a reeeeeeally freaking long time. She didn't inform me until I was almost done scrubbing that the 15lb bag was pre-washed and ready to go...er, thanks a lot there Aunty. We could've got WAY more done if we hadn't wasted all that time scrubbing!!!
Alas, a day spent together was worth it anyhow.
My hands are very dry from being in the water for so long. Twisting all the skins of the beets was a bit tedious too. I so love pickled beets though and my mouth starts watering just thinking of their deliciousness.
My little jug could not handle the boiling water. So sad. Not even barbie could fix it.
We had to do over the juice when Aunty added 10 cups of salt, yes that's right, 10 to the pot. WAY too pickled!!! A math misfortune and a bit of a waste.
Right there is a thing of beauty.
I'll be pickling again this weekend to finish off those bags!
I love days like this!

Amazing the things one can get done...

What a day.
I got lots done, enjoyed my family, made dinner, had a bath and worked on a project instead of watching tv and eating junk food.
Even my sweet girl enjoyed the yummy dish I made. Chicken, asparagus and Cauliflower Cakes.
My husband actually said the words,"the cauliflower is good".
wow.
I'm pleased.
I like it a little crispy. I am happy that I did not give up even when I had to throw the first batch away. We have pans that I don't understand(I say that instead of calling them stupid piece of a$$ pans). After I started using the cast iron instead, things went much more smoothly.

You know one of those days where everything goes right and even though nothing great happened, it was still satisfying? That is the kind of day today turned out to be.
9 garments.
Count them, 9!!!
That is what I can accomplish in the 45 minutes I put to good use. Better use that is than watching brainless tv episodes and filling my body with garbage that it does not process well.
To think that all 9 of these garments were just sitting there collecting dust for months and months when I could've saved myself so much angst by just putting down the chocolate and stepping away from the remote.
I hope this marks a turning point in my nightly rituals, especially now that the winter is fast approaching.

Cheers

Peeked My Pinterest

I am totally addicted to Pinterest.
So thrilled with this online bulletin board of fun, It actually gave me new vision for my blog.
And here it is. I am back.

I tried this recipe Zucchini Cakes

and was totally thrilled with the taste, the fact that I found it on Pinterest, and that I actually was intrigued enough to let my creative side come alive.

In my new vision provoked by Pinterest, I see my blog being much more fascinating as I record new things I learn, love and try. My new vision also includes me actually learning how to add pictures from the internet as well as links to sites that make me smile, think, laugh, etc...
To some this may seem like nothing new, but to me it is very new territory.
I have always been quite lazy when it comes to learning and/or trying new things and I would really like to turn over a new leaf here.
Consequently in one post you have a new recipe and two new linking skillz. I am so proud of me right now.

I thank my wonderful friend Laura B. for introducing me to Pinterest. I mean if I'm at home a lot more with my sweet girl I might as well learn some new things and try some new stuff and just get all around smarter and more creative striving to better myself...right?

That's something I really enjoy about life...
I can always better myself. The opportunities in which to do this are endless.
It's really quite exciting when you think about it!