Savory Beignets

I've been making a lot of new recipes lately thanks to Pinterest.  One of our favorites is this recipe for easy, tasty Cheddar and Chive Beignets.  They were a great Father's Day evening treat and tasted like a fried cheese doughnut.  Yum yum!  I even got to use chives from our garden!

Another new favorite is Gooey S'mores Cookies.  I finally found a use for these freeze-dried marshmallows that I bought for use in hot cocoa...that we never actually put in hot cocoa.  I will say this: the cookies are yummy but not really "gooey" because the marshmallows aren't your typical fluffy, melty morsels of goo. 

As usual, Jefferson found a comfy place in front of the tv while I baked.  This time he even had an old pillow for his old head.   You'd think that dog was addicted to "watching" Rachel Maddow on the dvr... He really needs to get out more.



Kitten Update

To say we are smitten by these kittens is an understatement.  They are amazingly cute and lovable.  They love the kids, they love the grownups, they love each other, and they even sort of like the dogs.  They scavenge around the kitchen floor and mooch any morsel of people food they can get. 

As previously posted, we found out that the black kitten is actually a boy, and the little mister and his sister are fitting in just fine.  They still have to wear their neck cones until their declawing injuries heal, but gosh they make for cute little cone heads.

Father's Day 2012

A warm and windy Father's Day was enjoyed by all this year.  Colby got to pick which delicious buffet we would eat this year (he chose Beacon Hills, a place we had never eaten before).  He spent the afternoon playing Frisbee golf with another dad/friend.  He got some great gifts from his loving offspring (pistachios and a Barnes & Noble gift card - he's easy to please).

Happy Father's Day to the best baby-daddy a girl could ever hope to have!

And just for good measure, here's another cute-as-hell kitten photo...

Happy 80th Birthday, Grandma!

Here's me with the birthday girl at her party. Eighty years and still going strong! My aunt who lives on a lake near Papillion hosted a shindig at her house. It was an awesome day to get everyone out on the water and to see cousins I haven't seen in ages.

The girls went straight to the lake despite the fact that I thought the water was freezing!

I managed to get only one photo of either of the boys.  They were quickly off playing with the other kids their ages.  Most of the kids are boys, thus leaving my girls to hang out with my teenaged sisters.  The boys, however, managed to spend the entire day fighting, dunking each other, and having all sorts of boy fun.  Here's a shot of Dade and my brother (they are the same age):





I remembered to take a few shots of myself with some of my favorite people in the world...

A year ago at this time I was dipping my feet in the ocean and feeling the beach sand between my toes.  This year I had to settle for dipping my feet in a man-made lake, but I wore the same beach dress just to make it feel a little more oceany.  Next year, Sassafras Mama, we are coming back!!

A Few Surprises

Thursdays can be pretty boring, you know. They aren't as depressing as Mondays or as exciting as Fridays. This Thursday has been a little bit different. First of all, I took the kittens to the vet this morning to get shots, declawed, and spayed. It just so happens that Miss Dinah is actually a mister! I was suspicious last week when I caught a glimpse of "her" on "her" back, so I asked my brother in law to take a look. He assured me, and I quote, "That's a vagina." It most assuredly was NOT. So, Dinah is now Sheldon. Surprise number two for the day is yoga related. Today was the second Thursday I have attended hot yoga sculpt. It's a challenging yoga class that uses weights and resistance bands. This class also adds heat - no air conditioning, no fans, no windows or doors open. The 90+ degree day made for an extra hot class. It's just you and your sweaty ass crack against the world. I am notoriously against any activity involving copious amounts of sweat, so I am pleasantly surprised to find out that I LOVE hot yoga. I feel so good afterwards! Despite all previous reservations about attending hot yoga, I'm telling you know to give it a try!

About Time for a Rant

Will the Republicans tank the US economy just to make Barack Obama look bad? The truth is, what's good for the country is good for Obama. It seems to me that Republicans are so obsessed with making Obama look bad that they won't pass legislation that benefits the nation. So, not only are Republicans all over the country rolling back reproductive rights and civil rights, they are also railing against any and all government spending - including spending on infrastructure and public employees (fire fighters, teachers, cops). Republicans yell out, "Obama is anti business, anti free enterprise!" Although that isn't the truth, do you blame anyone in this country who IS wary of private industry?? The only people getting raises in this economy are CEOs. Not teachers. Not cops. Not librarians. Corporate tax rates are ridiculously low. The heads of corporations are not applying for food stamps and Medicaid - but their employees might be. As much as I enjoy a little Republican bashing, I can't omit the shortcomings of our President. Come on, man. Trying to co promise with the Republican party of today is like having an argument with a three year old - you absolutely cannot and will not win because your opponent isn't reasonable. Eventually, the 99% is going to end up with nothing, and we will start asking for the heads of the 1%. Pitchforks in hand and guillotines waiting, we will get to the point where we have nothing left to lose and will start to fight back. I surely hope that we will start to fight back sooner.

It's Me!

I write a lot about how much my body has changed over the last few years. Having a healthy body has been a goal of mine for a very long time, and it has taken me quite awhile to get here. However, I am beginning to find a drawback to the new me, namely that people don't recognize me. Between losing weight and growing out my hair, I admit I have changed quite a bit. Example: at my brother's graduation ceremony last month two of my aunts and an uncle walked right by me like I was a stranger. Seriously, I was waving and saying hello, and they kept right on walking until my step mom (who was right beside me) flagged them. Example #2: Today I attended a class at a yoga studio where I have never been. (side note: they don't use the air conditioning, and all the windows and door were closed. I didn't think it was possible for a human to sweat so much...) So, I walk into the room and there stands a woman I went to college with. Granted, I haven't seen her in ten years, but I recognized her right away (despite the fact that she's put on lots of weight). As soon as I heard someone say her name, I knew for sure it was who I thought. So, I said, "Hey, you were a poli sci major at Wayne State, right?" (side note: world's worst pick up line). I had about 20 classes with this girl, I bet, and she had no clue who I was. She said, "I remember Nichole, but YOU'RE her?" Yep, it's me. So, if you see a stranger walking down the street waving and saying hi to you it might be me. There's just less of me.