Health and Wellness

The first thing I really wanted to focus on was my health. I had that scary doctors appointment last year when I said I was interested in having kids within a few years, and she responded that I needed to loose weight now or else I'd end up weighing a number that I never thought could be reach. Scared me straight.

I've always been the heavier sibling, heavier cousin, heavier friend. I eat when I'm happy. I eat when I'm sad, bored, alone, or just because. And to add to the fire, I love cooking...

It's been about 9 months now of heading to the gym and trying to loose weight. I have dropped a couple lbs here and there in the past, but put them back on as soon as I stopped concentrating on what I ate. It hit me a couple weeks ago when I came home from a bad day at the gym balling my eyes out. "I'm sick of being fat!" I wailed at my husband. But all he can do is comfort me, because this is my own struggle that I've had since I was 12 years old.

So in conjunction with my Happiness Project, I said "enough is enough!" I have come up with my list of things to do, yes to loose weight, but also to just be healthy. If I'm not happy and healthy, I'm not going to be proud of the way I raise a family. I want good habits now, so that when there are lil ones running around, I can help them.

Gym (5 times a week)
Run a 5K in 2013
Brush teeth every night
Wash face every night
Vitamins everyday
More fruits and veggies
Drink 8 glasses of water a day
MyFitnessPal.com

I set things that I know are doable and helpful. They are small tweaks to my life that need to be lasting changes to help my overall health. So, now after the 9 months, and a couple sore muscles and joints I am 10 lbs closer to my goal weight.

Back on the Band Wagon

Its really easy to fall off the horse. They are large animals that tend to buck every now and then. And after you have been ever so gracefully removed, the horse looks a lot larger this time around.

But then again - that is what Spring is all about - NEW BEGINNINGS. A chance to start again with a fresh slate.

So I haven't been doing too great with all of my resolutions/goals. I have been able to still maintain a strength in my health. I have been going to the gym and have even started to loose a few lbs! But that bowl of mac and cheese calls me ever so often, and that bowl is always a bottom-less pit of yummy gooey cheese.... *wipes drool from mouth*

SPRING - its has sprung. Or so mother nature tells me. My tulips are blooming, the herbs are growing, the jackets have come off. Spring has sprung into the east coast with peaks of 80 degree weather. (less than thrilled) So I am taking this beautiful spring day to jump back on the band wagon and get back into the groove (who doesn't like to dance - if they tell you they don't, they're lying to you!)

Enjoy the sunshine!

A Return to Normalcy

Ok, I was suppose to start blogging a couple of weeks ago and I failed at that. I have been falling short on many of my goals lately. I think one of the problems I have with the Happiness Project and goal setting in general is that often I find it easy to come up with excuses why it just isn't possible to do whatever it is I'm suppose to do. That and I have a horrible memory and a habit of doing the same thing after work every day. I need to come up with mantras that get me motivated to change my habits.

Today at work a friend and I were discussing doing what you are passionate about. She asked me what I love to do. I love to sit on my butt and watch TV. Unfortunately that doesn't earn me any money. I love getting lost in a good sci-fi/fantasy book or series for weeks and months at a time. Also not something that earns me money. I think this is part of my feeling that I just want to do everything. I want to learn to code. I want to learn how to assist the dentist. I want to learn how to manage an office. I want to do everything. I can't do everything though, and I know that once I start doing something new I won't necessary like it as much as I thought I would. So I have to grow up and figure out something that I can do well, even if I don't love it, and then get someone to pay me for it. I think for me that this is going to be coding, because, really, the internet isn't going anywhere.

So some of the goals I am going to start getting back on track with...

Learn to code
There's this awesome app for the iPad called iTunes U that has a whole bunch of college courses for free. Specifically there's an intro to computer science course from Harvard. I started it a couple of weeks ago. Made a couple of monkeys jump on a bed and then stopped. I am going to start that up again. I just finished satisfying my TV addiction with The Vampire Diaries, so I really have no excuse not to spend and hour a night watching the next lecture or doing the next assignment.

On top of that a friend of mine is starting a food truck business and wants me to do her webpage. This is an amazing opportunity for me and instead of starting it I have been moping about things that have happened that I have no control over.

Go Swimming
You were calling me for awhile to get me out of bed to go swimming. It worked well. And then I decided that I could get out of bed myself, and I can. I still get up every morning at 5, I just don't follow through. Part of my excuse for this one is that my swim suit is too big and I constantly feel like my boobs are going to fall out of it. As great as that would be for the lifeguards and the male swimmers, it'd be kind of embarrassing for me. Now in reality, I'm a good 90% sure that this is not going to happen, but I'm still self conscious about it. Why don't you just get a new swimsuit that fits, you ask? Because then I'd have to get my ass out of bed at 5am and part of me likes having the excuse to sleep for another hour. No more!

[Pause.........]

Swimsuit purchased and on it's way.

Finish the Couch to 5K program I started last fall
Granted my iPhone was stolen, so I can't use the couch to 5K app I had anymore. Also it's winter and I'm not very keen to run on ice. Both of those are excuses. We have this handy dandy membership to the YMCA which I am using to go swimming. And they have an indoor track at said Y. So maybe I should get off my ass and just go run in circles for awhile. Any amount is more than I am doing now and will help me on the way to a 5K. And when I get a new phone (in a couple of weeks) I can get the app again and zoom through the first couple of weeks and feel good about myself.


I think in this setting myself back on my goals I have come up with some rules of my own that I know are always my down fall when I try and do things:

No excuses
The past is in the past
Stop watching TV (non productive TV that is. I watch the iTunes U lectures on TV.)

There's only three right now, but I'm sure I'll come up with more as I go along.

Right now I think I'm going to work on these three goals as I seem to have a problem with adding lots of things to my routine. I think these are three easy ones I can add without too much disruption. And I can even alternate the swimming with the running in the morning so I don't have to find "extra" time to do it. Because I know myself and I would use the "I don't have any time" excuse in a heartbeat.

I think your idea of posting your rules around. For me, right on the TV will be a good place for them. Also, I may have to make a background for my phone so that it's in front of my face when I hit snooze in the morning. Though I did label my alarm "Get your lazy ass out of bed and go swimming." It at least makes me feel a little bad about hitting snooze.

-Carin

Lisa's Happiness Rules! (double entendre intended)

Weather they be a manifest, commandments, rules, or just sayings - we all have that personal code we stand by.

Gretchen Rubin established a set of "rules" to help her through her Happiness Project. These were sayings she lived by, things she already knew but ones that brought her happiness and helped her stay happy. So I have started the list of the things I mutter to myself when really all I want to do is scream out loud. They are my mantras I repeat to myself when that person in front of me doesn't hold open the door.

Less is more.
No, really, take that last piece of jewelry off. Simple things can often be the most efficient. Its about taking that moment to realize that the clutter isn't always as beautiful as simplicity. But it even goes further. Maybe you don't need to tell the whole story that's going through your mind, only use the highlights (or maybe just don't say anything)

You get what you give.
Why yes that is the name of my favorite song courtesy of the '90s one-hit-wonder The New Radicals. But think about it, its karma bitch. I'm not going to get mad at the person in front of me who didn't hold open the door, because I didn't hold it open for that old lady yesterday. You want a birthday card from your friend you haven't talked to in 5 years? Then maybe you should send one out to. Its about the balance of give and take. I want my husband to notice that I do the dishes everyday, but I have to give something back in return.

It is what it is.
Ok, so this wan't my saying. It came from A. But his saying has become my saying. If you can't change it, don't worry about it. Its not worth your time and effort of stressing if its never going to change, or if you don't have control. Sometimes you just have to do what your boss tells you it.

No Bullshit.
Cut the crap! If its something that has to get done, just do it - NOW. Don't wait till tomorrow, don't put it on a sticky note, because guess what - sticky notes loose their stickiness and fall away. Then all of a sudden you find yourself paying late fees on all of your bills and in a mountain of debt with no clean underwear and ants crawling over your dirty dishes (partly true). To quote Nike - "Just do it!"

Pay attention.
I know it can be hard. But take a moment and listen. (Put down the sponge, turn, look, and listen) You don't need to see all the small details, but noticing the small things can help make you appreciate whats important.

Love.

I'm kind of tacking this one on as a whim. But the word has been circling through my head of late. I'm almost using it as a reminder to myself. "No, you do love this". Coming from Philly now, the word is everywhere too. Love Park in Philadelphia is a symbol of brotherly love. It is important to put love out into the world. Love the people in your life. Remember that you do love to do your hobbies, they aren't chores.

Be Honest. 
Yes, listen to what your mother taught you "Honesty is the best policy." But what I have realized is that it's important to be honest with yourself. I hate doing dishes. But what I really hate more is the pile of dirty dishes in the sink. So "Cut the crap" and do your chore. I hate dirty clothes lying around. Instead of letting them lay around waiting for someone else to pick them up, I do it - because I hate to see them there. Realize why you are doing something, and not just that you are doing it. There is a reason, what is it?

Practice what you preach.
I'm writing this blog right? So I have to be accountable to it. I can't let you down. I have to do what I say I'm going to do. Which is also true for may things - pay your bills, go to the gym. Just don't lie to yourself. You'll let yourself and the ones you love down.

Ok - that turned into me preaching like I know everything... Sorry!

But these are the things I tell myself. I have found that these little reminders are the things that keep me going. I can also say that I have said them to myself in my head and my attitude changes. I stop being negative and just feel a little lighter.

Of course, the "code" doesn't always work, and its not always the first thing I think of. But its important. They are things I want to get better at also. I'm thinking of posting them somewhere, or maybe just a few that need more work get posted here and there. As a knitter, its a WIP (work in progress).

-Lisa

I'm in!

Ok Sister of Mine,

I am on board with your Happiness Project. The last time I attempted to do this it got derailed. Like things do. Then again, I didn't have you. I had flakey friends that flaked out. (I still love them, but I just need less flakey if I'm going to do this properly. Mostly because I'm kind of flakey too.)

I like in Gretchen's book how she pointed out that it's not that she wasn't happy, she was. She just wasn't as happy as she wanted to be. That was the part that speaks to me. I am happy. I love my life. I just want to tweak it a bit and feel happier. Maybe happy isn't necessarily the best word. I want to feel more fulfilled... maybe... I don't think that's the right word either. I feel like I waste a lot of my time watching T.V. I get a large amount of enjoyment out of watching T.V., so I don't know if it is exactly a waste. But there are so many things that I want to do and there are so many things that I know I could do. Productive! That's it. I want to be more productive with my life.

So the last time I tried to do this, we stuck to the one thing a month plan that Gretchen did, but we just didn't start in January. We started with some random month and just went from there. I found a couple of things hard about this method:

1. I don't have 12 things that I want to work on. I felt stretched and pressured to come up with 12 things and then it stopped being about making me happier. 
2. From month to month I just concentrated on that month's thing and let the other things go by the wayside.
3. When I did try to carry things over into the next month I got stressed out. Also I got stressed out if I didn't complete things by the end of the month because I felt like I had failed. I didn't like that. 

I think your idea of picking things that you want to work on and then working on them a little every month is a good idea.

So I did a little research and apparently it takes - on average - doing something 66 days in a row to have it become a habit. Depending on how difficult it is. (As I said, a little bit of research. I found this article, which referenced a study. Seems legit. Those words will probably be my downfall.) That's about 2 months. So I propose we do this whole Happiness Project for 3 months and re-evaluate at that time to see if we need to try something different or maybe just try harder. ;)

In that vein, here are the things that I want to work on for the next three months:

• Health
• Communication
• Career
• FINISHING THINGS
• Organization
• Nerding it up (aka Increase my Awesomeness)
• Getting out of my shell

I'm not really succinct with some of those, but I'm not sure how else to put them. Some of these things are pretty self explanatory, some of them may require more explaining, but I know what they are and I think that's what's really important.

In the organization vein, I think we should re-organize this blog a little bit. Also, I think we should push each other to blog every day. Even just a short "I hate doing this and I don't have time for it. Here's what I failed at today. Make me feel better now." kind of post. I think this will help us with communicating back and forth. Since we're not always available at the same time it will let us be able to be there for each other throughout this process. We both have iPad's now and there's this app. I will not comment on it's awesomeness as I haven't used it yet, but it should help with the blogging process. I contend that when you're off getting poked in your nose you can still blog and then post them all in one large blog. See Cindy's early blog posts for an example.

In the reorganization of the blog vein: Every post should be tagged with your name and one of your Happiness Project thingies that you want to work on. That way we know what the other person wants to work on. Also I can add a menu item so I can jump to your posts and you can jump to my posts. Which will be especially handy if one or the other of us fails on the blogging every day.

Let me know what you think.

I cannot wait!
Carin

My New Happiness Project

Sister -

Since this past Christmas of 2012, when I opened your present of "The Happiness Project" by Gretchen Rubin, I have taken a couple seconds every day to realize what it is that makes me me, makes me happy, what I have already gotten from my last 26 years and what I want out of the next 26+ years. I know I have come far through many hiccups, but know I want to go somewhere further.

I have now been out of college for 4 years.
I graduated with a degree in a field that was exactly what I wanted to do.
I found a job in the field I graduated in.
I have progressed in that field and have a great start to my career.
Though all this I have lost a wonderful parent, but also found my best friend and begun a wonderful life together.

So now what....? I am on track to check off all the boxes I ever imagined that I wanted.

Yet somehow I still had the feeling that I was just floating through my life. Considering my life is wake up early, commute to work, work, commute home, gym, dinner, 1 hr to relax, sleep, repeat. And weekends became routine also, either little trips to visit with family or planning for the next week while trying to get through chores to keep the small apartment clean. I had stopped reading, knitting, sewing, drawing, painting, and the list could go on to include all the additional hobbies I had while growing up. What had changed? Was I really "too busy" to do anything I had interests in anymore?

The answer of being "too busy" was just not satisfying.

That's how I have come to the beginning of my Happiness Project. It's my hope to find balance through what appears to be daily chaos and rekindle my older interests and hobbies. Below is the list of the things I want to work on to balance myself.

Health
Relationships
Creative Projects
Organization
Mental Stimulation
Career
Finances

Gretchen Rubin took her year and divided her subjects of interest by month. She had her rules to live by and specific resolutions to obtain each month. I don't really like this method, and considering it took me sometime to finish the book, we are now at the end of February and I would be "behind". There is no reason to start off "behind". These topics are things I see that need to be developed for my entire life. They are each individually important and require that specific balance. I aim to touch on each topic often and keep coming back to them repeatedly.

This is where you come in sister!!!! You will be my help system, to allow me to have a checks and balance of sort. I can come here and touch base with you to maintain my resolutions and goals for each topic and allow be to vent and celebrate the progress.

Thanks!
Lisa

Letting the Geek Out

So little sister, there's something you might not know about me. Oh, wait, you totally know it. I'm a huge geek. I'm not just saying that to be cool, because geek is chic now. I'm the quiet book nerdy type of geek, with a little video gamer/comic book nerd/board gamer thrown in. I haven't had much time to read lately, so I've had to geek it up in other manners (ie. magic the gathering).

Luckily I have an awesome husband who is just as geeky as me (sometimes more so). So when I was trying to figure out what to do with the gross blind in our living room and he suggested we paint a Super Mario Brothers mural on it, well, I fell in love with him all over again. What can I say, I <3 Super Mario.

We still had my friend's projector so for a couple of nights after Z went to bed, we painted our ugly blind and made it purdy.

Let me tell you, it sounds all fun and it looks awesome now, but holy cripes it took so much more paint than I was expecting. This is probably because we have the honey comb blinds in the living room and the paint just went right through the layers. Some got on the windows. Yay for putty knives! We made a smart decision and put two coats of primer on before we started painting with our acrylics. Otherwise we would have spent a paycheck or two on paint.

All in all it turned out really cute. And it fit in with our crazy cat shelf of a wall. Basically we're working towards turning our living room into a world from Super Mario Brothers. We may just dress the cats up as Mario and Luigi and have them run some levels.... Or not. Or yes. :)

So the blind is part one of our grown up playroom. Stay tuned for part two! (Hint: it'll be a couple of months, so don't hold your breath. We're working on getting supplies.) 

DIY Kitchen Cubby Bar

I know, I know this post has been a long time coming.

I finished the kitchen bar thing in time for our house warming party. Just barely. I had to go out and buy a hand saw and cut about a quarter of an inch off the end the night before because it was too long. Mike said "measure twice, cut once." Well I measured about 4 times. And I watched the Home Depot guy measure a couple of times too. Apparently all that measuring was just not enough.

So before I show you the awesome pictures, a little back story.

I found this awesome minimalist desk on Pinterest one of the first days after I signed up and I fell in love. It was simple and functional and awesome. And we had just put a bid on our new place, which had a little space for a kitchen table. But we don't have a kitchen table. We do, however, have two bar stools. So I put two and two together and decided that this desk would be perfect in the kitchen. A little counter to put the bar stools under. As a bonus, it would be a test run for the bar that we're thinking of putting in in that space.

I liked the minimalist idea, but I wanted to give it a more kitchen-y feel and less of a desk feel. So I switched it up a bit. I used 1"x10" boards for the bottom and the sides (and the cubby hole sides) and a 2"x12" board for the top.

I had a ton of fun (can you read my sarcasm) sanding them down by hand, and I'm super picky, so I rounded the edges out a bit to give it a more home-y feel (and also as a bit of protection for the Z as she toddles around.).

Then I drilled pilot holes on the top and bottom where the ends were and also for the cubby separators. I put wood glue on both ends of each side and screwed right through it to strengthen the bond. In hindsight, I should have just used wood glue for the separators as I ended up with screws in the middle of the bar that weren't pretty. Just used a little bit of wood filler over them as camo and poof! Almost gone.

I wiped it down with paint thinner to get all the dust off and let it dry. Then I used Minwax pre-stain wood conditioner to get it ready for staining. (I have to say that I would have skipped that step, but we got a "welcome to the neighborhood" coupon from Ace for $10 off, so I thought, what the hell.) After letting it dry, again (you will see a pattern forming here), I stained it with Minwax Wood Finish in Puritan Pine. Insert more drying (the drying was the suckiest part of this project), and I sealed it with 3 coats of Minwax Polycrylic (more drying between coats).

Sidebar comment: Jeeze, you'd think that I'm getting paid by Minwax, but I'm not. I just heard good things about their products when I was researching how to stain and seal the bar.

I hung it on the wall using some cabinet cleats I found at Home Depot (something like this, but a stronger version rated for 200 lbs. Also I used two of them.).  I screwed them into the studs and used wall anchors -- the good kind and ones that are rated for 75 lbs. The whole bar doesn't way 75 lbs, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Ok, in that short description I left out the part where it didn't fit when I tried to put it on the wall and I had to take apart one end and saw off some and then reassemble it. That part is like the mistakes that Mom use to make in her cross stitching. :)

So yeah. That was the whole week long process. I wanted to take pictures of the process, but I did it all in our garage space and I kept forgetting to bring the camera down. So you'll just have to imagine. Or use the photos from the original post I used as inspiration. Those are pretty good.

In any case, here's what the kitchen looked like before:

And with our awesome addition:

Oh yeah, we painted the walls as well. After tearing down the wallpaper. Actually -- credit where credit is due -- the Dads attacked the wallpaper, skimmed, and painted the walls. And they did an amazing job. 

And the actual bar:

 I love the cubby holes and can't wait to find bins that will fit in them. And that corner is totally going to become my desk area for all the bills and paperwork that comes in. I've already got an in and out box up there (tutorial coming soon) and I'm going to have letter bins for Mike, Z, and I as well.

So slowly the kitchen is coming together. Can't wait to get all the ideas out of my head and into the real world.

Noodles Alfredo

 Momma Duck's Noodles Alfredo.

She was so good at having those quick meals that offered such variety in dinners. I never got sick of anything that she made all the time. This is a good quick fix for the creamy white sauce that I have yet to master. Honestly, somehow I cannot cook a good rue and make a good bechamel (look it up sister). I can't even melt cheese into a good cheddar cheese sauce. But with this - TADA!!! I can make cheesy pasta in the microwave.

Now I have a small kitchen, but I've managed to incorporate most every type of dish/gadget I need. Until now. I sat down yesterday morning and took a look at the recipe just to find out, I have only large casserole dishes. Its those stand by dishes that apparently I am lacking.

Anyway... this recipe will do just fine in any microwaveable dish that is large enough to hold your 3 cups of noodles.
 

It was sooo gooood to eat. Like adult mac & cheese.

I know there has to be a good way to make this slightly healthier. For one thing, we can probably swap the whipping cream for a 1% or skim milk. Also, we can probably use less butter, and maybe swap in some mozzarella cheese for the creaminess the butter would add. I had used the faux-parmesan cheese (ya know the fake stuff that's grated down). I bet this would be awesome though if you use freshly grated parmesan cheese - that would also help with creaminess.

Another swap that I know had been done before, is the pasta. Once you master the cheese sauce, any cooked pasta can be tossed in with the sauce. 

Still a good stand-by to add into the recipe box!

Best Manicotti Recipe Ever!

Remember the other day when you called me and I was making manicotti? Well here it is!

I got the recipe years ago in Home Ec. class in middle school. This time I made it with whole wheat flour 'cause that's what we have. I probably should have changed something in the recipe because of this, but I didn't and it still turned out delicious.

I made it the hard way, because it's just more fun that way. Also, because I have a crepe maker and I haven't used it in forever.

Without further ado,

Manicotti:

First we make the crepes...

2 eggs
1 cup water
1 cup flour
2 tbsp butter (melted)

Beat the egg, add the water and butter, then add the flour.

Pour batter onto a plate.

Use crepe maker to make deliciousness. (If you don't have a crepe maker then a: get one and b: you can make them in a pan it's just harder. You have to pour some of the batter in a heated pan and then tilt to spread the batter out. Then cook it for a couple of minutes. I haven't done it this way in a very long time. The other option is to buy manicotti pasta from the store and just cook it and then fill it, but that's just not as much of an adventure. And I like adventures.)

Yum! (on a side note, awesome blister right?)

I stacked them up on a separate plate with wax paper between them so they didn't stick together. I don't know if I was suppose to, but I did.

Then we make the filling. I'm a cheese person, and since I'm trying to eat better I added spinach. (and extra parmesan cheese because it's delicious.)

1 lb ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 tbsp parmesan cheese
1 cup mozzarella
1 cup cut spinach
dash of salt and pepper

Mix the cheeses and egg together. Add the spinach.

And then comes the fun part: Manicotti burrito time!

Fill the crepes and fold like a burrito and then place in a baking dish (best described in pictures):

Fold over the top and bottom (or what you deem the top and bottom to be).

Then a side. 

Fold over the last side and...

Ta-da!

Cover with sauce (I used Culinary Circle's Marinera sauce. It's delicious and doesn't have any added sugar, which is a big button for me. Because, really, who needs added sugar.) Sprinkle mozzarella and parmesan cheese on top and then stick it in the oven for 25 minutes at 325 degrees. 

Dig in. Even Z loved it. She picked the spinach out and some of it ended up in her hair and on her lap, but she'd just been finger painting before dinner so she needed a bath anyways. 

Tick Tock

So I'm a clock fanatic. We have wall clocks in every room of our house. (Wait, let me think.... I need a new one for the kitchen. The old one didn't fit the new decorating scheme and is now in the office. And I don't have any in the bathrooms. But almost every room in the place has a clock.) I didn't use to be this way, but with Z having to be at day care and me having to go in to work in the afternoon instead of the morning, I started losing track of time (and my cell phone). It became easier to just look at the wall and see what time it is no matter where you are.

It helped that I had a clock that I absconded with when I moved from Cali. I think that was the first wall clock I had and the rest of them I've collected over the past couple of years. Every time I think about getting rid of the original clock I find a new place to put it. And now, I get to give it a second life (or third, or fourth life. I haven't really been keeping track.)...

In it's old incarnation it fit in perfectly with Z's old room. (Remember those striped bins? Perfect, right?) Well, now the Z's room is purple (as are the bins). And really, I'm not going to have a green and blue room again any time soon. So what to do? Paint it! I love painting things. I'm so glad we have a paint closet in storage, because we have so much paint now. Love it!

I designed and printed up some new numbers (free printables!). Sanded down the face of the clock a bit, and then painted it purple with the left over paint from Z's room. I marked where the numbers were on the side edges and kind of guesstimated putting the new ones on based on the marks. The plain purple with the numbers was kind of boring, so I reached into my ginormous Sharpie box and added some curly cues. Cover the whole thing with Mod Podge to seal it and hang it up.

And now the Z has a clock that fits right in with her decor! I think it's the only clock in the house that doesn't tick, so I don't have to worry about it bugging her when she goes to sleep. (Like the one in our room does to me. Thank goodness for earplugs!)

Answer Unknown

The Great Kale Chip Question

I just don't know sister...

I have a lot a kale in my house right now. I was able to snag both a bushel and a peck of kale from my local produce store (which is my new favorite place - because the kale was only $2!). I have been trying to eat more fresh fruits and veggies in order to be healthy and lose weight through an overall life change. Incorporate more fruits and veggies, and OPTIONS of different fruits and veggies, I will be less tempted to eat the whole cheesecake I made the other week.

So - kale was purchased for green smoothies (something like this). But because my produce place is the creme de la creme of all produce, I have a TON! Thus comes the kale chip.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Remove tough stems of kale, wash and tear into large bite sized pieces.
Toss kale in 2 tbs olive oil
Spread in one layer on a baking sheet
Bake for 15 min
Sprinkle with salt immediately after removal from oven

They taste like little munchies :) It still definitely tastes like a dark leafy green, with a pinch of salt. The curly kale has provided all sorts of little crunch capabilities. I would warn, they shrink more than I expected. So when tearing, keep your pieces larger than bite sized. I have to say - it is no potato chip, but I will also admit, these would be a great replacement for that large bowl of popcorn during a movie!

Please try it yourself and let me know what you think about it :)

What to do WIth a Pile of Jeans and Pillow Forms

Since you didn't get a chance to post this week, I'm going to do some sharing with my post. Because I couldn't have finished this project without you. (Ok, maybe I could have. But I'm lazy and didn't want to go to the store. And you're awesome and sent me what I needed.)

The other day I was trying to simplify our life by getting rid of stuff we don't use and I stumbled upon...

Pillow forms and jeans! I had a ton of pillow forms and jeans that were just sitting in under the bed boxes. What a waste, both of space and function. Since I knew Z's room was going to be awesome and I know how much she loves flopping on the husband pillow we have, I thought I'd create the perfect reading nook with jean pillows for her.

Lucky for Z, I love weird jeans. And since I love them so much I can't help keep them even after they don't fit any more. I have had some of these since high school! (Flare much?) One pair had lace up sides. I kept the sides because I knew they'd be awesome for something, and poof! Lace up jean pillow! Thank you so much for the ribbon, it is perfect! We really are doing some long distance crafting!

Really the ribbon was perfect, and perfect timing too. I tried some other ribbon I had and it didn't work. So that pillow was just sitting around waiting to get done while I lazily ignored it and watched Castle. :)

The pillows finish up her nook perfectly. I'll do another post on the rest of her nook soon, I just wanted to get this one done. She loves sticking chalk and magnets in the pocket. She grabs books (well I grab them for her, they're kind of high up as she kept pulling them off the shelves at the old place.) and then sits down and leans back on her pillows to read!

Holy Healthy Eating, Batman!

Ok, so I'm doing this happiness project with some of the girls from work. (Sorry for the shameless plug, actually, no I'm not. I love where I work!) I think I told you to read the book The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin way back when we visited in October last year. I think you were a bit busy, so I guess you can be off the hook for not reading it yet. But I totally think you should. And then you should start your own happiness project, because it is... well not really life changing, but it is empowering. And it's making me get off my butt and be productive.

Anyways, the idea is that you set aside one thing to remember or change or work on each month. This month my thing is to take better care of myself. You know how I eat (or rather how I don't eat). I know that Z's still pretty young, but I'm afraid of her picking up her eating habits from me. So I decided that we're going to start having family dinners. Which Mom made seem really easy to do. I don't know how she did it. I know that we always had a fridge full of food, but until now I couldn't understand how she did it. Our fridge is always just the bare minimum of stuff. Anyways I was perusing Pinterest, like you do. And I came across a menu planner someone made. A bell went off in my head and I realized that if we planned dinners out for the week and just went shopping for that stuff then we'd be able to eat better. (You don't want to know how we use to shop.)

So I made one up for us.

I took a piece of foam board that I've had lying around our home forever and covered in scrapbook paper. The days of the week go down the middle, the left side is for main dishes and the right side is for sides. I used velcro to attach them to the board (the rrrrrrip is so satisfying!)

 I like being able to change up the meals by mixing different sides with different main dishes. Also we have some really simple main dishes - like "Chicken Breast." But that gives us more room to play with what we want to do and allows us to change menus without having to make a bajillion new cards. I also made up two fill-in-the-blank cards, one for main dishes and one for side dishes. I covered them with clear packing tape and I can write on them with dry erase marker. That way we can test out new dishes without having to make new cards for them. (See the main dish for Saturday?)

We had an unused recipe box, which is perfect for storing all the unused cards. And since I had so much of the navy card stock left, I cut it up and store it in the back of the box as well. Now if I want to add new cards, I just need to print them up and glue them to the card stock.

Of course I had to make the recipe box match the menu planner, I couldn't just let it be boring brown.

Yay for spray adhesive. I know you're not a big fan of it. But it made the recipe box covering so easy. I just cut out the pieces of scrapbook paper then sprayed them and stuck them on the box. *Note: Don't be lazy - make sure you have a drop cloth or newspaper or something under the box. I didn't and ended up with a sticky kitchen floor for a few days. 

So yeah, I had fish tonight for dinner. I still don't like it, but I ate it. I like to think that Mom would be proud. She'd probably also say something along the lines of "About damn time." :)

(I would like to apologize for not having step by step photos, but I'm working on doing it better in future posts... like way in the future. The next couple of projects are lacking in the step by step photos as well. In my defense, they're pretty easy projects and the step by step photos would be boring.) (And now I have the Step by Step theme song stuck in my head... Step by step, day by day. A fresh start over, a different hand to play....)

Cake Mix should be in EVERYTHING!

So I found the recipe for cake mix rice crispy treats on that wonderful thing called Pinterest awhile back. And I made them. They were OK. Nothing really to write home about. Mostly they tasted like rice crispy treats, but that may be because I didn't let the marshmallows melt enough before adding the cake mix. (My bad.) (Yes, I just said that. I'm allowed to, I grew up in the 80s and 90s. We Early-Y's are nostalgic like that. Then again, maybe it's just me.)

ANYWAY, at the end of the cake mix rice crispy treat recipe, Ali gives you an idea for cake mix cookies. Yes you read that right. Cookies. Made with -- wait for it -- Cake Mix. That sounded like a great idea. And after all the zaniness of moving, I needed something delicious. Also the cake mix was sitting in the cabinet asking to be eaten.

So, without further ado, Cake Mix Cookies (a la Gimmie Some Oven):

Stir 6 oz cake mix, 1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil, and an egg until mixed. Form into cookie dough balls, and bake at 350 for 10-12 min:

As you can see, I did not get cookie dough balls. I got cookie soup blobs. But as a wise woman once told me, "It's not what it looks like, it's how it tastes that matters." Even so, I dressed them up with some jimmies. (Don't get me started on jimmies vs. sprinkles.) Voilà...

About 10 minutes later I had the best cookies I've ever had. Z and I each had one, then she ran around in circles for awhile :) Mike and I finished them later while watching Community. SO GOOD.


P.S. I'm sorry about all the caps in this post. I couldn't help myself, these cookies took away my caps lock filter. 

Simple Turned Special

I always see these little signs in stores. You know the ones, the ones that you'd expect to find in little coffee shops. And you always look at them thinking "I can't put that in my house, I've never been there."


Well, now I can actually say "I have been there." And it was the most wonderful place in the world.

My hubby and I fell in love with Paris on our honeymoon. I would have to say that we both enjoyed it most of the 6 European destinations we plowed through in 2 weeks (yeah- do the math - we plowed through). Its the one where we had the best meal, duck at Le Petite Canard, and had our first Creme Brulee. We experienced art through architecture and history. Ahh, to be back in Paris....

I finally felt I had the right to purchase this decorative piece.

But see, I have a thing.... I like to make things my own. Since no 2 people are alike, we should all make our things unique. It was my wonderful hubby that had the idea of turning this into a photo holder.


We hot glued little clothespins (found at your local craft store) that we painted black (to match the letters of course) to the back of a few letters, to allow for photo options later. With a photo of us from our wedding, we now had a piece that brought together our wedding and our honeymoon.

Now, we will always have Paris.

Giving Tree

I'm stealing unsecured internet! (This problem will hopefully be solved by Tuesday. Fingers crossed!) I probably shouldn't be logging in to things to protect my passwords, but I just can't help myself, Z's room is almost finished and I have to share one of my favorite parts. Her Giving Tree!!!

I'll get more pictures up soon of her whole room, I'm waiting for some glue to dry on the trim around her bookcase right now, so it'll probably be early next week. But I finished the Giving Tree on Friday and I am so excited to share it with you. 

So the whole thing is that I LOVE Shel Silverstein. I love his zany poems, I love his whimsy, I love everything about his writings. And I want Z to have part of that. I especially love The Giving Tree. What a great story of friendship. So many people have come and gone in my life, and it's nice to read that story and remember the people who even when they leave, they are still there for me and still caring about me even when we don't talk every day. 

At first I was thinking vinyl wall cling, but those are EXPENSIVE. Especially when we are talking about the size that I'm thinking. So I thought, why not just paint it on? It can't be that hard. And it wasn't. 

Kudos to Curt for letting me borrow his projector, it really made the whole thing go very easily.

My set up.

 I had to get out the old MacBook. No literally, the OLD MacBook. The new one didn't have the right plug to work with the S-video adapter that we had. So glad I saved it after all this time.

Outlining!

As you can see, the tiny MacBook meant I had to do it in parts. Not horrible, but inconvient. 

Painting the outline

Filled in

I think painting that outline was the worst part. I'm just not patient enough to find it enjoyable. And I've got just enough perfectionist in me to be annoyed when it's a little bit off, but not enough to care enough to fix it. 

Anyways, here's the finished product. The lighting is kind of crappy, but I'll get a better picture up when I take pictures of her completed room. Which means you have to wait with bated breath to see the awesomeness!

It really turned out amazingly well. Ideally I'd like to get a picture with her in her crib reaching up for the apple like the little boy on the front of the book, but Z's not one for performing. At least not performing what you want her to do. That's not to say she's not a little performer. Yesterday before nap time she walked out of her room and up to the TV to dance to the Muppet Show theme song. As soon as it was over, she turned around to me and gave me the sign for bed. "That's it mom, I just needed to dance before nap time. I can go to sleep now." It's amazing how she talks without speaking :) 

Moving Tips from the Middle of the Insanity

So I'm failing with the blogging. But! Before I get scolded, I do want to say that we are in the process of moving. Everyone keeps telling us that we are so lucky because we are getting 2 weeks to move from one place to another. I don't know how lucky it is. Living between two places is not the easiest thing ever. (Also, living without internet and attempting to blog is not easy.)

I thought I'd share some of the hints I'm finding out along the way....

1. As hard as it is, do not get overwhelmed.

2. While you are living in one place and moving stuff over to the new place, keep a pad of paper on hand and write down what you use everyday. Such as a toothbrush, hairbrush, soap, shampoo, tweezers, etc. Then on the day that you are going to move over, put all of this stuff in ONE BOX so that you know you have everything you need when you get to the new place. It sucks getting there and then realizing right before bed that you are missing something (I know from experience). The advantage of the one box is that you know right where to go to find it.

3. Move everything to the room it's suppose to be in. I know that's kind of obvious, but when you're upgrading (like we are) you some times end up with stuff that use to be in one room and is now in a different room. It's nice to sit down before hand and think about what will go in the new room so you don't pack stuff that's going in different rooms in the same box.

4. When you're unpacking, unpack one room at a time. This may not be for everyone, but for me it's HUGE. I started unpacking and organizing Z's room first. It's been done for a couple of days now. I hate walking through all the unpacked boxes in the living room and dining room to get there, but once I get to her room I feel like I'm actually getting stuff done. Our room's almost done now so I have two sanctuaries!

5. That brings me to my next point. Unpack and organize at the same time. Things may not stay where you initially put them, but if you don't find a place for everything you'll end up with piles of junk that don't have a place.

6. If it doesn't have a place, THROW IT OUT! Where was it in your old place? Put it there. What's that you say? "But it doesn't belong there!!" Well then put it where it belongs or throw it out!

Ok, that's all for now as I have been stealing free interents from the coffee shop and should probably return to my regularly scheduled insanity.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

In my attempt to hone into my lack of Irish heritage I have decided to make Irish Potato Candies. Potato Candies you ask. Yes - POTATO - b/c they look like potatoes!!!

I was first introduced to Irish Potato Candies when I moved out to Philadelphia. It was store bought little bundles of yummy goodness. Coconut covered in cinnamon. See no potato incorporated in the candy, just the shape.

Over the past week, everyone has been going Irish crazy in preparation for St. Patty's Day, and I came across the recipe here.

It was messy and fun to make. Plus they look like little potatoes, or um... *cough* ... little bricks :)

Still a yummy treat for a Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Enjoy

Lisa

So much to do, So little time

Ok, so I know that I have promised striped bins, but they are taking FOREVER. I don't think I'm going to like stripes after this whole ordeal. Or maybe I'll come to appreciate them more.

In any case, we closed on our new place! So all the ideas that are buzzing around in my head now get to start becoming a reality. Striped bins are just the beginning, sis. Just you wait.

Since I'm going to be pretty busy with getting the condo ready and moving, I thought I'd share some inspiration that I'm having for Z's room. I don't have much, as most if it is coming from the space itself (yay inspiring space!) But I'll share what I do have.

1. I love the purples. Like I've said before, I think the purples are great for a little girl. It gives her room to grow. 

2a&b. There's a great built in bookcase in her room and I can't wait to make it a dream library for her. She's just starting to get into books and I want her to be able to organize the bookcase with her toys and a bunch of books for her to enjoy. (And I love bin organization)

3a&b. I absolutely love, love, love Shel Silverstein. I want to have Z experience the fun and whimsy that he brings to poems every day. Also I love the look of vinyl wall art. I really want to comine the two, but I'm on a budget here. I've got some ideas... 

4. I don't want to stifle her creativity. With the magnets on our filing cabinet I can let her draw on alternative surfaces. I want to bring this into her bedroom too. 

5. Every little girl should have her own place to be able to get away too. I want to be able to give her that. 

The pictures are kind of all over the place, I wasn't quite looking for inspirational looks as inspirational things that I want to put my spin on. Sometimes it's easy to see a picture of a great design or look and say "I want that exact look in my kitchen!" and then when you try to make it happen you fall miserably short. I hate that. I'd rather find images like this that don't look anything like what I actually want and take the idea and put my spin on it. Then I'm usually pretty pleased with the result. 

So hopefully, when I finally get done with this crazy experiment I won't look back and say "WTF WAS I THINKING?!" I'm pretty scared of that, and I think that's part of what stops me from undertaking projects like this one. I'm glad to have you and this outlet so that I have a reason to keep going with it through the scary part.