Road Trippin'!

Omg!! Am I really blogging more than once a year??

My husband and I took a few road trips last year and hopefully will be taking a few more in the coming year. I've been taking pics of what I've found to make our hotel stays a little more like home and our drives a little less tedious. I'll try to share what has worked and some pics from the road as well.

The first one comes from our trip to Sulphur Springs, Tx.

Ever noticed that musty hotel smell? No matter how clean they are...some hotel rooms just smell funky. Yeah, that's rights... I'm starting this post off with hotel funk. Well, that is an easier and cheaper (under $4) fix than travelling with your Scentsy and waiting for the wax to cool because you forgot to unplug it until right before you are checking out. What is it? It's your car vent clip!!

It's super inexpensive, they are easy to pick up pretty much anywhere and if you forget to put it back in the car... no big loss. 

Travel hack #2... is also under $4. It's an LED night light.

If you are travelling with another person, this will keep you from either tripping over a piece of furniture or startling the bejeezus out of them when you have to turn on a lamp to keep from accidentally killing yourself on the way to the bathroom at 4am. If you have kids (we don't) it will probably be a comfort to them when they wake up in the middle of the night. There are some that double as a flashlight in a power outage. They cost a little more, but if you don't have a flashlight in your travel kit like we do, it might be good to spring for the upgrade.

#3 is a Food Hack

We are trying to make an effort to eat less junk food when we travel. So when we are travelling for more than 48hrs, we try to book hotels with a fridge and a microwave. Also, I take my Rice Cooker!

These are available at grocery and at everything-under-the-sun-marts for less than $24. If you are trying to eat healthier this is how you keep that up when you travel.

This spaghetti dinner was 1 small bag of thin spaghetti (broken in half), and one jar of chunky pasta sauce. I made 5 servings for a couple of dollars each. Since my husband has to have protein with each meal, I browned up 1 lb of ground beef (3 servings) and froze it for the trip. Plus, it was an extra "ice pack" in the cooler.

#4 is also a rice cooker hack. CORNBREAD!!

I hate to tease you with this one... but I'm going to have to do it. The photos of the ingredients and step by step, didn't happen. I was so excited to try it that I forgot to take the pictures!! I'll take those on another road trip. 

Speaking of road trip, it was a loooong one!! 356 miles and almost 7hrs.

If you're from Texas you know that anywhere worth going means you're going to travel at least 100 miles.. if not more.. and you're going to make some stops along the way. 

And last but not least.. anywhere you drive... you are bound to find road construction. Which is what inspired this selfie. 

Don't get used to it... they don't happen often. 

Blog Diggity Blog!!

Hey y'all!! .. and Happy New Year!! I can't believe it's 2015 already. It seems like just a week ago it was 2014. I'm excited about the start of a new year. I have some stuff I want to accomplish for 2015. Hopefully I won't procrastinate too badly and actually get some of them accomplished. This year I hope to finally make the time to take some metalsmithing lessons at the Southwest School of Art ( https://www.swschool.org/communityclasses/adult ). I'm also hoping to branch out into vintage/antique/junk shows with the bullet and key jewelry.. and maybe get back to doing some gun shows again. Fear, as in fear of rejection, is what has mostly kept me from expanding my horizons. I took November and December off from shows. Probably not my best move.. but it was necessary. I haven't really made anything new over the last few months and if you haven't noticed.. the website is down until I decide what I want to do with it. Google will probably penalize me for it, and since I don't know which animal is running the zoo (penguin, panda, or a cyclops), I'll worry about that later. There is much to ponder for now.. in the meantime... how about some Mexican food!? 

One of my husband's favorite meals is Entomatadas. Think Enchiladas without the kick. They are super easy to make and easy on the purse strings too. But I will be honest... my favorite part is... leftovers!!

Cheese Entomatadas 
12 corn tortillas (do NOT substitute flour tortillas because they get gummy and that's kinda gross)

2 1/2c of grated Panela cheese

1 1/2c of grated Colby Jack cheese

1c of canned Tomato soup

1/2c of water

2Tbsp olive oil 

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

Begin by heating up the condensed tomato soup, 1/2c water, and the dry ingredients in a hot skillet. Stir periodically and simmer until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. While that is getting started, in a second skillet, heat up the olive oil (do not let it smoke) and dredge the corn tortillas through the oil and stack them on a plate. 

This will keep them from breaking later. I usually let the sauce cool for a couple of minutes before getting rolling. Don't forget to mix your cheeses and set them aside.  

Once your sauce is done and your tortillas pliable, begin by coating your baking dish with a thin layer of sauce. Begin to preheat your oven to 350* at this time. Place one tortilla in the sauce and place about a Tbsp of cheese blend about 1/3 down on the tortilla. Take the edge closest to the cheese and begin to roll. You'll be coating and filling the Entomatadas in one step. Continue this process, adding more sauce to the baking dish as needed. Once all of your tortillas are filled and rolled, take the remaining tomato sauce (hopefully it won't be too much) and evenly coat the top of them and sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese over the top. 

Bake your Entomatadas for about 25 minutes, or until the cheese on top is melted. Serve with rice, refried beans, and a small salad... 

Buen Provecho! 

~ Substitutions ~

If you are not a fan of cheese filled foods, please feel free to substitute shredded roasted chicken or turkey. Use part of the sauce on the alternative filling just to make sure they have a little added moisture.

**Please resist the urge to drown these in chili meat... it's not traditional and they really are wonderful without it. 

 

Eggplant Stew... it's what's for dinner.

I know it's been a while, but, I decided it's time to try blogging again.

Summer is pretty much done here in S. Texas. The temperatures are no longer in the 100's and it's finally started to rain again. It's nature's way of letting us know that fall is clearly on the way.

Rainy weather means comfort food, for my husband that means soup. For the "lone vegetarian" in the house (that would be me), it's Eggplant Stew. I had honestly never had eggplant until last year when mom and I (ok.. mostly mom) started growing it in a local community garden. She tried several varieties, including a long Japanese eggplant and a gorgeous heirloom variety called Black Beauty. Black Beauty just loved it's garden spot. It's a very productive variety with a longer season than most. We picked the last eggplants in early December. It's also not as bitter as others. We had more eggplant than we knew what to do with, and Eggplant Parm got old quick. On a quest for something different this shiksa found a wonderful Kosher/Vegetarian food blog called Cafe Liz and her recipe for Eggplant Tomato Stew. Never being one to follow directions or an actual recipe... I had to put my own spin on it. 

I love this recipe because the ingredients are easily accessible and won't break the bank. It also freezes really well. Trust me, that's a good thing because I usually cook like I'm feeding an army. This was a bad summer in the garden and I had to actually buy an eggplant. I was surprised at how relatively inexpensive they are (under $3 for a large eggplant). 

For about 6-8 servings (depending on how hungry you are), you'll need....

1 medium eggplant

1 medium yellow onion

3 medium carrots

1 stalk of celery (include the leafy bits.. no need to waste them)

1 small sweet potato

2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes (russets tent to get mushy)

1/2 a red bell pepper

1/2 small can of tomato paste or 1 can of your favorite condensed tomato soup

2 cloves of garlic (crushed) or 1 heaping teaspoon of garlic powder

1 Tbsp of Paprika

2 Tbsp of Olive Oil 

2c of water

2 vegetable bouillon cubes

the juice of 1/2 a lemon plus 1c of water

(I also added 1/2c of seeded and deveined Poblano Pepper.. 'cause a Mexican chica needs her spice.)

Dice all the veggies, keeping the eggplant in a separate container. I cut the eggplant a little chunkier than the rest of the veg and soaked the eggplant in the lemon juice and water to keep it from oxidizing (but that is not really necessary). 

Preheat the oil and add the carrots, potato, onion, celery, sweet potato, and red bell pepper. Cook them in the oil until the onions have become translucent. At this point add the water, garlic powder, paprika, tomato, and two bouillon cubes. Simmer just long enough to dissolve the bouillon cubes and add the diced eggplant. Continue to simmer until the eggplant softens up and the carrots are fork tender, then salt and pepper to taste and serve over white rice.

**If you have a passionate dislike for eggplant (I really hope you don't because this is reeeeally good)... feel free to substitute it with zucchini, butternut or acorn squash. Just remember the cook time is longer for butternut and acorn squash. 

Hi hi!! It's been a while since I've made the time to write. I've been creating and trying to book as many shows as I possibly can. Tonight is not about jewelry, shows, or other stuff. Today it's all about keeping warm! We live in a house that was built in the 1940's. It's drafty and cold on nights like this. We usually don't run the gas heater. Normally we run a small electric heaters in the rooms we are occupying at the time, instead of trying to heat the entire house. My 4-legged child... The Chiiq... has had trouble keeping warm. She's worn a sweater and a t-shirt for a few days last week. Yes, my dog dresses in layers when it's cold. Saturday was humid and muggy so we let her run around nekkid! But when we got home from a show on Sunday, grandma had put her in a sweater again.

As the temperatures took a dip tonight, she started to shiver. I was sitting at my desk and thought I'd sit her on my lap, something she's not used to doing.

 So, we put her inside my hoodie instead.

*say Hi Chiiq!*

She must have found warmth... 'cause she's been in my jacket for almost an hour and I haven't the heart to make her leave.

The Chiiq and I hope you all find your warm and cozy spot! =)

Forget me not.

Wikipedia Photo by Bernhard Kohl 

My original plan was to sleep through today. The neighbor's contractor had other plans for me. The sound of hammers and the jarring sounds of 2x4's being dropped  was the first noises I heard this morning. I walked into the kitchen and hubby was watching the "replay" of that horrible morning's events. So, since it seems I can't escape it.... I will write.

We all remember where we were and what we did that day. I remember being home alone. My husband left for work at 6am, I'd finished cleaning up after breakfast and had just sat down with my tea to watch the Today Show. I remember flipping channels and seeing a report on another station about a small aircraft hitting one of the Twin Towers. The nauseated feeling in the pit of my stomach began as I changed the channel back to see if the Today Show had any more information. Then moments later, it happened again.... then once more in Pennsylvania. I remember a lot of things from that day, like the silence in the air. I'm not just talking about the lack of aircraft. Even the birds were silent that day.. it was eerie. There are a lot of things I wish I could forget... like watching people leap out of buildings and watching the world we knew come to an end.

One memory in particular stands out from that day. I remember an Ernst and Young Associate that I'd spoken to while working as a Corporate Travel Agent for American Express a couple of years prior to the attacks. The day we spoke the fire alarms went off in my building. When he asked what the noise in the back ground was, I answered "it's just the fire alarm.. it's no big deal" and explained that it had been the third one that day. Unfortunately, fire alarms and bomb threats were an almost weekly occurrence for us, we had a "prankster" in the building. Many in the building had become complacent about leaving when the alarms went off.. me included. He became really upset with me and asked which floor I was on. When I said it was the 9th floor, he scolded me for staying. He insisted I take his phone number, and leave the building immediately. I did as he asked and got down to the lobby, only to be told to return to my desk... it was another false alarm. When I called him back he informed me that he was based at the World Trade Center and  had been in the building during the previous attempt on the WTC in 1993. He said I should never take those alarms for granted and made me promise to leave the building when they went off again. I never heard from him after that day. I left that job in 1999.

On September 11th, 2001... I remembered him. He was the first person that came to mind. I prayed for him. I wondered if he was in the building and hoped he made it out. I'm embarrassed to say, I don't remember his name. But I do remember his voice and his advice... "get out of the building"... and hope that he did.  

The Midnight Ramblings of an Insomniac.

Here goes another night with little to no sleep. I'm beginning to wonder what's going on. Have I reset my internal clock? or is there something really wrong with me? (don't answer that) I am even beginning to envy the Chiiq. The Chiiq is our 4yr old Shih'Tzu. If sleeping were a sport... she'd be an Olympic level competitor. She can sleep any time, any place and in any position. She sleeps on her back, on my back, on her side, and has even been known to cover her head with what ever article of clothing has fallen out of the laundry basket to block out the light. At the moment she is asleep in my work room, blissfully unaware of my insomnia. She looks so peaceful when she sleeps. I do love it when she starts to dream. Her little paws start wiggling and she makes the funniest little noise. It sounds like "bwooop, bwooop, bwooop" and it makes me giggle everytime she does it. This year she started howling in her sleep and she always wakes up startled afterwards. Then she falls asleep immediately after. If only I could accomplish the same thing. The lack of sleep is beginning to affect my memory, ability to focus and I keep feeling like I'm coming down with a cold. A few nights ago I tried beading until I got sleepy. The only thing I accomplished was to drop more beads than I strung. At that point I thought I was ready to sleep... no such luck there. Earlier today I almost fell out of a chair in the kitchen. I started to doze off while eating a sandwich. So, I went to bed and then couldn't sleep. This evening, out of desperation, I took a sleeping pill. As you can see, it isn't working. I slept soundly for 2hours and now my mind is racing once more. It is now 1:20am and here I am rambling like an idiot. To top it all off, my eyelid is twitching again!! This has  been going on for about a week or more. Apparently it is a result of eyestrain, lack of sleep, stress, and too much caffeine. And guess what... all four of those apply to me. Yes, I know I need to cut out the caffeine, but that's the only way I can stay awake during the day. Most nights I wait until my eyes are tearing from the constant yawning. But then, I get into bed and I am wide awake. The car seems to be the only place I can sleep. Something about the hum of the motor and the a/c that just knocks me out. No worries, hubby is always the one driving. I'm thinking that perhaps we need a long road trip so I can get a decent "night's" sleep. But, that's not gonna happen. Today, I even considered laying on the floor next to my monster, to see if I might get some rest too. It didn't work. It's now almost 2am and my eyelids are starting to get heavy and I feel myself tipping out of my chair once more. Perhaps it's time to try again. Hopefully my body will decide it's had enough and will demand rest soon. If not, then this will be my days and nights.. wide awake and half asleep.

Summer Update...

It's H.O.T... HOT!! I can't remember the last time it wasn't over 100*. And let's just say.. the rain has been non-existent. The drought has been horrendous... with the exception of a couple of cloud bursts that missed 90% of the city. I'm sooo looking forward to winter. The good news is.. we finally got air conditioning in our vehicle. Thanks to my brother-in-law Mike and my husband (refusing to accept the mechanic's estimate for the repair of said A/C unit), I can now go places without risk of a heat stroke. =)

I'm still up to my neck in beads... not complaining... there are worse things to be up to your neck in. Slowly but surely we are getting  back to a more normal existence and doing shows on a more regular basis. The downtime we had over the last few months gave me a chance to try to get my workroom organized. It's a continual work in progress, because as we all know... I bead like the Tazmanian Devil. I've also gotten to work on some custom pieces for friends and family. My older sister bought some gorgeous beads in New Mexico.

... and this is what I made for her.

I've also spent some time "getting hammered".

I purchased a slightly used PMC Hot Pot. I can't wait to put it to use!

... but best of all I got to spend time with family! (hubby is a little camera shy so he's the one shooting the pic.)

Hope your summer has gone well... and that you've managed to stay cool!

;)