A Rant and a New Recipe

My Mom just makes we laugh. The other night we were talking on the phone and the conversation turns to what it normally turns to, dinner.


Mom: “What are you making?”

Me: “Homemade Pizza”

Mom: “What kinda crust did you get?”

Me: “ I made my own”

Mom: “Well, aren’t we a little Miss Suzy Homemaker”

It made me laugh, I’m sure that comment was in response to all the’ from scratching’ cooking I have been doing lately. What she doesn’t remember, is that I remember her cooking this way every night of my childhood. My favorite were the homemade, fresh cut French Fries, so good with some fresh perch.

I’m been having a really good time with all my kitchen experiments. This weekend, I’m turning my attention to baking again. I’m developing some Easter cupcakes, with coconut cream filing, sounds pretty good doesn’t it?

Hubby and I are in the midst of planning a ‘road-trip’ for this summer. We are spending a week at the beach with my family, and we have decided to drive down there, we are usually plane people, but I’m protesting the price of flights. So here is my little rant. Hubby and I have been making this same trip for years, I’ve been pricing flights for months, and it just keeps going up. The price now, which was the cheapest I could find and means, traveling on a day I don’t want to travel and would require a hotel stay, is twice the price that we have paid in the past. To quote my niece “no way, Hosey” – so this is my little protest, which I know won’t even phase the airlines, but totally makes me feel better.

Updates, Updates, Updates…

Money diet is going pretty well; this week was filled with eating at home, packing lunches, and minimally shopping. I, along with his parents, was surprised at the early arrival of a friend’s baby, and I had to spurge some on the little guy.

What I’ve learned this week….

Rosie O’Donnell is headed to Chicago to tape her new show for OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) in Harpo Studios (where Oprah tapes today.) My guess is that this isn’t going to go very well; I really don’t think she is a Chicago kinda girl, but I guess we will see.

One last thing I learned this week. It is hard to find the right words to say to a friend when you know they are hurting, and you know there is not anything you can do, but do it anyway, it will make you and them feel so much better.

Opening Day is less than 2 days away, here’s hoping the Tribe has a good year (or at least a better year than the CAVS!)

~Cyn

P.S - I dropped a new recipe over on the Recipe of the Week page, check it out!

A Cold and Rainy Wednesday

Happy Wednesday! We made in half-way through another week. Not sure how the spring weather is treating you, but it has been cold and rainy here in Chicago for the last couple of days. I’m counting these days as the April showers, and it’s making me look forward to May flowers!


New Recipe Wednesday

Sunday night I made quite possibly one of the best meals I’ve made all year. This was in great part due to the new Philadelphia Cooking Crème. This wonderful creation is a lot like cream cheese on it’s creamier and is made to be added to recipes. Although it comes in several flavors, I have only tried the Italian Cheese & Herb (although, I have the original, and Santa Fe in my frig) so far. So, this is what I did. I started out with my basic meat sauce recipe, and after that had simmered for about 10 mins, I added in the cooking crème & some cooked lasagna noodles. It was wonderful, and in fact we had the leftovers for dinner tonight! I call it Creamy Skillet Lasagna, pretty catchy, huh? If you would like to check out the whole recipe just click over to my tab New Recipe of the Week and you will find it right on top.

Sad, Sad, Day

Do you ever have one of those mornings, we your whole day seems to be headed in the wrong direction? Well, I had one of those this morning. I forgot my ID badge for work (sort of alittle problem when you work in a building with 32 floors), my IPOD, and before I realized all this, the low fuel light came on in the car this morning (seriously, I put so few miles on my car that I only fill up every 2 weeks, so I always forget to check.) So, I get to work, and at the same time I’m answering my phone, I’m receiving a breaking news email, both delivered the sad news of Elizabeth Taylor’s passing. I was alittle heart-broken. I am completely in love with old Hollywood, the movies, their lives, the glamour, all of it. So losing her is like losing another piece of that history, and that to me is very sad. In honor of her, I’m watching ‘Cat on Hot Tin Roof’ while I write this. It is not my favorite of hers (that would be, 'Giant') but, I am still enjoying her and the very young and handsome Paul Newman.


Updates…

 So our money diet seems to be going pretty well, expect for the fact that I left my lunch at home on Monday, but I had some coupons that offset some of the cost of lunch, so it didn’t work out too bad, other than that we have only spent what we had to, and that is the whole plan.

Spring cleaning? Has anyone gotten started on this? Just a couple of additional tips. When you are cleaning out your cleaning supply cabinet, be on the look out for items that may have expired or that maybe too old to be of any use, especially those that are starting to gather rust around the tops and nozzles. Spring cleaning time is also a great time to work through you backlog of freezer goods, so that you can be ready for all that ice cream this summer!


Gotta Go, it’s time for my weekly does of Tim Olyphant in Justified. Hope you have had a great beginning to the week and are now ready for the downward slide into the weekend!

Later
~Cyn

Spring Cleaning...getting the cobwebs out

Happy First Day of Spring!  It is finally starting to feel like it in Chicago, we even had a thunderstorm today.

Everything is starting to come alive, and the birds seem to be coming back. I love Spring for it’s March Madness, and the sense of renewal that is in the air. It is especially welcome this year after the unpleasant winter that we had.

The best part of Spring is finally being able to open the windows and let the fresh air in, getting the deck ready for the numerous cook-outs, the general anticipation of all things summer. With that being said, it is also time to your house in order. Spring cleaning, in my opinion, is a necessary evil. By Spring, I accumulated enough stuff that I don’t really need, and it’s time to get my house straight so I can by outdoors in the sun, and not inside wondering when the last time I cleaned behind the refrigerator. It’s a clean slate for me. It also means I can ignore big cleaning tasks until November.

I have what I would call a system for spring and fall cleaning. It is a simple procedure that I developed over the years, to get it done as quickly and easily, as possible. It helps me avoid, starting one thing, seeing another that needs to be done, and never getting back to the original thing that I started.  Below are some of the tips I use to get through it.

Enlist a partner. 

The whole process goes much quicker, and easier if there are multiple sets of hands working on it. Hubby is my partner is generally responsible for all the outdoor stuff (deck, cars) and all of the stuff I can’t reach (tops of cabinets, ceiling fans). He also is in charge pulling out the appliances and cleaning behind them.  He is usually pretty helpful as long as I give him and list and lots of encouragement.

The squirrels left Hubby a present!

Clean out your closets first.

Seriously, go through each closet before you even pick up a sponge, this can be helpful in reducing your workload.  Create a staging area (I use my dining room), and designate three sections, eBay, Goodwill, Trash.
Ask your self the following questions when you are evaluating an item.
   o Do I like it? Stop feeling guilty and get rid of it!
   o Have anyone used this, worn this, or displayed this in the past year?  If the answer to either question is    
      no, get rid of it.
   o Can CD's be downloaded to your computer, and then sold on eBay or donated?  We did this last year
      and I feel like we lost a 100 pounds.


Once you have been through all the closets..

   o Take out the Trash.
   o Load the Goodwill items into your car (or your Hubby’s) and if possible take them for donation right   
      away (this is a great Hubby chore). These items need to be gone as soon as possible to avoid them
      ending up back in your house. Don’t forget to get a receipt.
  o Take pictures of all the items in your eBay pile, and sit down at your computer and get them listed. If they
     do not sell, they too should be taken for donation.

Time to make your lists.

I make a list for every room, even my laundry room. It is important to do this, so that you do not get sidetracked. Create a second column on your list if the task requires something unique to accomplish, for example, my fabric lamp shades require my lent brush. Create separate lists for each of your helpers, and a shopping list for any items you may need, remember to check out the dollar store first!

All my cleaning supplies in one place!

Don’t Forget

· Ceiling Fans
· Vents, and behind furniture
· Lampshades
· Dishwashers, Microwaves, Ovens, Washing Machines, Dryers, Vacuum Cleaners, Grills
· Windows and sills
· Cars

Now it’s time to get started! Feel free to drop me a line (cynfullywonder@gmail.com) with any questions - or just leave me a comment below.

Good Luck and Happy Cleaning!

~Cyn

It's a Miracle...I tried something new...and I liked it!

I'm usually pretty open to change for the most part, expect when it comes to some very specific things.  My preference in sandwich condiments fall into one of these categories.  So needless to say, it has been a really long time since I have even tried Miracle Whip, I was raised in a mayo house.  So when I received some samples in the mail I thought, why not.  So I made my favorite TBT (toast, bacon and tomato) sandwich for breakfast this morning (very popular at my house) – it was soooo good this morning.  I could believe how much flavor it added to my sandwich.  Going to have to add this to my shopping list!

The Money Diet - Only the Essentials...

Hubby and I are officially on a money diet. Only the essentials from now until our vacation in June, it is going to be hard, but I think that we can do it! I read an article on doing this and I have always wanted to try it so here we go!



So how to determine the essentials?

 This is going to be the tricky part. Obviously, all the utilities are essential, and we do need a roof over our heads. Insurance will be important to keep up, too. So I guess that brings us to our shopping. Yikes. We really don’t go overboard, but I have a mild addiction to savings and deals. It’s like a rush for me. But, again times like these are what my stockpile is for. So, our only real expenses should be produce and perishables over the next few weeks (yes, I do have that much in my freezer and pantry). I do have to buy some meat (really good deal at Dominick’s this week) and some sugar, but then I should be good. This morning on the train, I wrote out three weeks worth of menus, and that is based on the things I could remember that I had. It will give me a chance to clean out my freezer and pantry, and I’ve sure it will be the cause of several interesting lunches and dinners.

All this for under $60 bucks!

The Rules

· No eating out. This is a sucky rule, but okay it’s only a couple of months.

· Take a lunch to work everyday. Please see above. No more, ‘I don’t like my lunch’ anymore.

· No new clothes, DVDs, CDs, concert tickets, etc..

The only non-essentials that I can see us having to buy are plane tickets, and those are a vacation expense, and because we are doing to pay for vacation, so I believe that is not a rules violation, cat food (which can be clearly defined as an essential at our house), and we are going to try this restaurant by our house (we have a coupon and a gift card so it will practically be free).

Let’s just hope that the Sons of Anarchy Season 3 DVD set does not come out during this time, because that is probably a temptation that Hubby will not be able to resist.  I can guarantee that he is going to do better at this than me!


Later
~Cyn

Sunday Catch-Up

Happy Daylight Savings!  Hope everyone remembered to change their clocks and check their smoke detector batteries.  We were amazed this morning that our alarm clock auto updated itself, how about that we actually managed to buy something that actually made our lives easier, Cheers to us!

Since I haven't been feeling very well, we had a very lazy weekend.  We are caught up to the end of season 2 of Sons of Anarchy.  Again, what a great show.  We are hoping that season 3 comes out soon so we can figure out what happened.  Since I have been confined to the sofa for most of the weekend, I have also caught up on Detroit 1-8-7, aren't DVR's great?  I'm not sure what we did without ours!

March Madness

Let it begin!  So happy that my Bucks have worked there way to the overall #1 seed!  The next couple of days will be spent filling out brackets at our house.  We have alot of fun with this.  My second favorite part of March madness is the snacking that takes place during the games.  I have alot of yummies planned.

Shopping and Menu Planning

I have been trying to do all my grocery shopping on Sunday morning now, this new plan I've been working is really starting to pay off, I was able to plan almost my whole weekly menu with thing from my pantry.  This allowed me to free up most of my weekly budget for stock up items included tomato sauce, pasta and ground turkey.  Finally starting to see the results I have been looking for.  The best part has been not running to the store 2 or 3 times a week.  So this what we are having this week

Sunday: Beef Stew (it was so good!)
Monday:  Out to dinner with some of Jeff's high school friends (must pick out a cute outfit)
Tuesday: Breakfast for dinner (have already made and cooked the homemade hashbrowns)
Wednesday: Leftover Spaghetti and Meatballs (Saturday nights dinner)
Thursday: Leftover Beef Stew
Friday: ??? (probably a $5 pizza from the grocery store - so good and we get two meals out of it!)
Saturday: Ribs (made in the crockpot) with homemade mac and cheese


Well that about wraps up our weekend.  Next couple of weeks so prove to be exciting!

Some Funnies for a Friday

Funniest Pic of me I could find!

I borrowed this idea for the Ice Queen’s blog, “Fat Like Me”. It is that like the ABC of you! It was fun to fill out. Try it and leave your answers in the comments!


Age: 36

Bed size: Queen..but we need a King..

Chore you hate: Cleaning the toilet, that is why I have assigned that to Hubby.

Dogs: Zero, we are kitty kat family.

Essential start of your day: Starbucks Mocha Doubleshot, right out on of the frig. Yum.

Fave color: Toss up between Scarlet and Gray…LOL

Gold or silver: Silver

Height: 5’4 – exactly a foot shorter than hubby

Instruments I play: piano, clarinet

Job title: Account Manager

Kids: None yet, but we keep practicing.. ;)

Live: Palatine, IL

Mom’s name: Jo Ann. Or Mama Jo as I like to call her.

Nicknames: Cyn, CK, Betsy

Overnight hospital stays: Emergency Appendectomy, Thanksgiving 2004.

Pet peeve: Stupid People. Or at least people acting stupid. Think Jessica Simpson and Chicken of the Sea.

Quote from a movie: “You want me to all the way up there, to a Yankee school, just so I can practice free love with you?” - Shag (if you have not seen this movie, you have to, it's great!)

Right or left handed: Right.

Siblings: Two sissies (as my niece puts it “you have two sissies, and I only have one”.) - is that better or worse?

Time you wake up: 5:50 every morning during the weeks, around 9:00 most weekends (that is as long as kitty can hold out before he wants breakfast)

Underwear: Mixture of super comfortable cotton and super uncomfortable, sexy.

Veg you dislike: Brussels Sprouts.

What makes you run late: My inability to get out of bed some mornings.

X-rays you have had done: Other than my teeth, none.  I did I have a MRI once.

Yummy food you make: Stuffed peppers and Shrimp Stir-Fry

Zoo Animal, favorite:  Cougar of course!

In Tressel I Still Trust

Okay, loyal readers I apologize for the transgression of this post.  But, as you know there is one thing that I am very passionate about and that is my Buckeyes, so I need to get somethings off my chest.

First of all what those players did was wrong.  It was against the rules, so that makes it wrong.  You break the rules you get punished.  Is it there fault?  Yes, they knew the rules, knew they were going to get in trouble if they got caught, they got caught, they got in trouble.  So they have been suspended for the Sugar Bowl?  In my opinion, yes.  But they weren't so we all need to get over that.  Are these rules fair?  Yes, there has to be a line drawn somewhere.  Is it big of these players to come back and take there punishment? Yes, they could have just gone to the NFL, but they didn't.  Honestly, I hope that they have learned a lesson.

Now on to Tressel...what did he know, and when?  I guess those answers will come out.  Do I think that he is fair and honest man?  Yes, I have shook his hand and looked into his eyes.  I trust him.  On many occasions he has made the unpopular decision to get rid of 'problems' that were good performers, or had the potential to be good performers.  Anyone remember Clarrett?  Bet alot of people don't realize that Tressel is still in his life trying still to teach that young man.  That is what Tressel does, he teaches.  These players come in boys and leave men.  He cannot however make all their decisions for them.

I think it's wrong to label Tressel a cheater, or the players in the situation cheaters.  Bad decisions were obviously made.  I hope that they learn from this and it only makes the program stronger.

I am not an expert, I'm an alumni and life long fan.  I know who we are, and what we stand for, and I know that this will only make us stronger...

Sunday Night Catch All

So I know that I have been alittle out of touch lately.  But, it is for good reasons, well at least reasons that I think are good. I've been cooking, cleaning, and spending alot of time with my hubby.  I've also noticed that when I get stressed out, I tend to do that.  Plus, trying to keep up with Charlie Sheen is exhausting!

Addicted

We have started a really bad trend at our house.  Each night, after work, we come home, workout, make dinner, and then head straight for the tv.  We have gotten ourselves wrapped up in the show Justified ; we hadn't seen season one, so we put that in our Netflix queue and away we went, we caught up pretty quick.  It is such a smart show, the writing is great, the actors are all very skilled.  It is great.  It centers around a US Marshall (Raylan Gibbons); played by Timothy Olyphant (very yummy eye candy) and his efforts to clean up his home town from the evils that plague it.  It does make you hope that the stories it tells are from the mind of creative writers, and not a commentary on what is going on in America. 

After we caught up with that, we moved on to Sons of Anarchy which centers around a motorcycle 'club'.  So far so good.  Katy Seagal plays one of the main characters and she is great!  Smart and witty; although not always for good!

To get my husband to sit down and watch an actually show with me (ESPN and games do not count!) is a major accomplishment so I am soaking this up while I can.

Review

Last Saturday night was the last stop on the Jeff has turned 40 tour.  Kid Rock at the United Center.  Great show, great time, although I had to scare a couple of potheads and tell an old man (not mine) to grow up.  But we had a ball - and since that was the only thing that he wanted for his birthday (although not the only thing he asked or got) it was defiantly worth it! 


Stockpiling

Okay, so remember when I made fun of the extreme couponers and there stockpiles?  Well, if you were to look in my pantry, laundry room, or bedroom closet you would laugh.  I have a what I would call a "mini-stockpile' going on.  I ordered a program called Grocery University, and it so tempting to not to do it.  It's like an addiction with it's own little buzz...

So it's looking to be a busy Spring...Big Ten Men's BB tournament this coming weekend, followed closely by the NCAA tournament, Bulls and Blackhawks look to both make the playoffs, we are less than a month away from Opening Day, and Dale Jr. is 10th in the points. 

So this is a warning to Mother Nature, get with the program, we got alot to do!

Have a great week!

Later ~ Cyn