Weekend Wrapup

Quite a busy weekend but very productive.

Saturday Dan was sick so I decided to make soup. It was a dreary day and it just made sense. So I made Carla Hall's Tomato-Sweet Potato Soup. I was a little worried because Dan doesn't like sweet potatoes but I wanted this one. It turned out really well and it wasn't overpowering in any one vegetable (it had carrots and onions along with the named ones). I even got to use my stick blender. To go along with it I made super tasty grilled cheese.




Since he was sick, I decided to go shopping. I made out so good. First was the weekly Walmart trip for less than $50. Then I hit JCP and got a Liz Claiborne sweater for four dollars thanks to a $10 gift card they sent me. Then I went to Kohls and spent $20 and got three shirts, two candles ($2 each) and a snowflake bowl. I was super excited with my purchases.







And most importantly I bought fabric to make a curtain for my utility room.




Sunday after church I spent two hours sewing the curtain. I impressed Dan because I didn't use a pattern but really it was just a big rectangle and I had to measure a few times. I'm super happy with the result and I get to cross so etching off my list. Less than $20 for my custom curtain.





For dinner I made General Tso's Chicken from The Chew. It turned out pretty good. Spicy, sweet, good chicken.




Only bad part of the weekend was Abby got an infection and had to go to the vet and get antibiotics. You know something is up when she doesn't eat her food in the morning. But she was all excited about a cat in the evening so the pills must be working.

The weekend ended watching Revenge. I couldn't believe she shot her. I can't wait for next week's episode.

Friday Fragments

Here's this weeks fragments joining with other bloggers at Mrs. 4444's place.



Did you hear that Monopoly is getting rid of one token and replacing it with another. People vote and the iron is out and the cat is in. I guess that covers most pet owners now. The dog is the most popular piece. Personally I like the wheelbarrow so I can wheel my money around the board. :)

Stupid criminal this week is three men who robbed a church of its audio equipment. They took it to a music store to sell. Guess who was in the store? The reverend trying to replace the stolen equipment. He saw what the men were trying to sell and called the cops. Moral of the story...don't steal from church. God will hunt you down.

Anyone watch Smash this week? That Megan Hilty can sing. And Jennifer Hudson was so amazing, she blew Katherine McPhee out of the water. But I could have told you that after watching American Idol. I never liked Katherine.

The gumbo we made on Sunday has been so tasty this week as leftovers. There is still a little left but I think I've had enough. Three times in a week is my limit.

Revenge comes back Sunday and it is going to be so good. They promised no more breaks for a bit which is good because we are coming up to revealing who is going down in the boat that they showed briefly in the first episode of season 2. I can't wait.

I'm going to make a plug for an app from work. It will help researchers determine how well forecasts/radar is accurately predicting precipitation. It is called mPING and is for both Apple and Android phones. Simple to use. All you do is pick the type of precipitation that you are having (they even tell you the difference) and submit. The app can tell your location. Read all about it in the press release from NOAA . I know the researchers involved and it is a great way to help science move forward.

And so ends another version of Fragments. Join in today or wait until next week to see what I have to share.

Blogging A to Z Challenge

I decided to go for it and sign up for the A to Z Challenge in April. I was number 605 on the sign up list. So many people. Hopefully I'll find some new blogs to read and I'll get some new readers myself.

This is the take the bull by the horns mentality speaking. I'm just going for it!

Hodgepodge - Cold Hearted Snake

Time for some hodgepodge questions from Joyce.

1. Chinese New Year will be celebrated on February 10th, and 2013 is the year of the snake. When did you last see a snake? Are you okay around snakes or do they give you the shivers?

I do not like snakes. I avoid the herpetarium at the zoo. I don't remember the last time I saw one in real life but it was a long time.

2. The color red in Chinese culture usually means good luck. Do you believe in luck?

I think some people are lucky. Say my child and her scratch off cards. It never fails that when I get them for Christmas she is the one to win something.

3. sledding-ice skating-building a snowman...if given a choice, which activity would you choose? Which of the three have you done most recently?

If I could be a great ice skater I would choose that. But with my skill level I would say sledding is better suited for me. My snowmen never turn out (of course we usually don't have the right snow). But I don't own any clothing that would be appropriate for playing in the snow. No boots, snow pants, waterproof anything.

I think the last I would have done was attempt to make a snowman. We don't own a sled but once when Whitney was little we did "redneck" sledding. We got a laundry basket and pushed her around in it. Let's just say we really don't have a hill to sled on either.

4. Ralph Waldo Emerson is credited as saying, "The years teach much which the days never knew." Where have you seen this quote played out in your own life?

Here we are again with the quotes. I'm horrible at these questions. I guess it means that you are able to look back with years in between instead of seeing something that day?

5. When was the last time you ate a cupcake?

Last cupcake would have been at a Christmas party.

6. What's something you can't say no to?

I can't say no to answering the hodgepodge every week!

7. Are you a doodler?

Only at meetings that are totally boring. Then my doodles are more just shapes and lines. I like to put lots of dots on a piece of paper and connect them. Then color in the shapes.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

My title today was inspire by the year of the snake. Which reminded me of the Paula Abdul song...Cold Hearted Snake. What can I say, my mind connects words sometimes.

Weekend Wrapup - Super Edition

At first I didn't think I did anything this weekend. Then I realized I was wrng. It was jam packed.

First and most important we went to lowes and ordered the back door. With all the extras (they are painting it and got different hinges) I walked out with a can of spray paint and $1000 charged to my lowes card. Two weeks the door should be in and installed!

Because it took forever to get it ordered ( computer issues) we were late getting home. My plan to make a new recipe beef bourgignon was not going to be dissuaded however. So we ate dinner at 8 Saturday night. It was so dried out. Which was sad because it cost a lot of money to make. Next time crockpot cooking.

Sunday at church we had tailgate Sunday. Lots of inflatables for kids and grown ups. Free burgers and hot dogs. Ushers wore referee shirts. It was a lot of fun but hectic. Our church started a new satellite church yesterday so a lot of volunteers went there plus we closed a satellite church in town so we had a lot of those people come in. I was acting head usher and I was scrambling. We ran out of seats and had to put out chairs. Not my finest example of ushering but hopefully people will be back next week and well be better organized.

Since we had to buy new locks for the back door, we also decided to get new front door knobs and locks. We installed them after lunch. It took longer than we planned because one of the holes in the door wasn't big enough and we had to get the drill out. But dan was great and got the job done.




This is the 20 year old crappy looking stuff.




The hole that wasn't big enough.




The finished project.

Of course now we need to change the door knocker and the door handle on the screen door to match the black but we can do it.

And finally there was the game. We made gumbo which wasn't ready until 8 because the door took longer than planned. Do you sense a theme here. But it was worth the wait. I've posted the recipe for it last year. Delicious.




I was also on the USA Today ad panel I got to rate all of the Super Bowl ads. We had a lot of them online so we could rate them earlier because it had to be done by the end of the fourth quarter. I'm happy to say that the ones that I thought were the best did come out on top. Budweiser Clydesdales were my number one. The other good ones were Doritos princess and the jeep one saluting the military.

I'm not going to even mention the worst one. Lets just say it is always on the bottom every year and if I could have given it negative numbers I would have. I don't often say something was disgusting but that one was.

And so as you can see, I did have a busy weekend. Bring on the week!

Roast Chicken with Lemon and Thyme

In my quest to expand my cooking horizons, I finally made a roast chicken. I can't believe I've lived this long and not done it before. Really it is much easier than a turkey and doesn't take but an hour to cook.

Roast Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary
recipe courtesy of Food and Wine

1 chicken (3 to 3 1/2 pounds)
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
Salt
Fresh-ground black pepper
4 3-inch-long strips lemon zest
1 small onion, quartered
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup water

Heat the oven to 425°. Rub the cavity of the chicken with the dried rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper and then stuff with the strips of lemon zest and the quartered onion. Twist the wings behind the back of the chicken and tie the legs together. Put the chicken, breast-side up, in a roasting pan. Coat the chicken with the oil and sprinkle it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/8 teaspoon of pepper, and the 1 tablespoon lemon juice.

Roast the chicken until it is just done, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer the bird to a plate and leave to rest in a warm spot for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour off the fat from the roasting pan. Set the pan over moderate heat and add the water. Bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to dislodge any brown bits. Boil until reduced to approximately 1/4 cup, about 4 minutes. Add any accumulated juices from the chicken along with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Serve the bird with the pan juices.

Comments - A whole small onion did not fit in the chicken but we got as much in it as we could. I didn't make the pan juice in the last step but really the chicken was so moist it wasn't needed. I will say that the breast meat was juicy but not flavorful. So next time I'll find a different recipe that will make it taste better. But not bad for a first try. I'll be cooking more of these birds.

Friday Fragments

Joining up with Mrs. 4444 (eventhough she felt the need to empty her mind early early this week) for this week's fragments.



The geese have taken over the neighborhood. They are just everywhere, blocking traffic, acting like they own the world. At first it was cute, and now I think it may be a sign of an animal revolution.

Stupid Criminal of the week hails from Oklahoma. Seems a woman keeps drunk dialing 911. They have tried and tried to talk to her and tell her it isn't an emergency but she keeps calling. They have reached out to her family to no avail. They arrested her this week and will continue to arrest her every time she does it.

The church event went well Monday night. They sold 1,300 tickets but not everyone showed up. Which is good because the auditorium only holds 1,200. They set out the extra chairs and had overflow rooms ready but they only needed a few of the extra chairs. Wow is all I can say.

Remember Sunday is the big game...the PUPPY BOWL on Animal Planet. 61 puppies playing with toys and trying to score touchdowns. Watch for the kitty halftime show and the hedgehog cheerleaders. All puppies were from rescue shelters and are either up for adoption or have been adopted.

I'm considering to the Blog A-Z Challenge in April. My posts are usually random but maybe I can do this. I'll let you know what I decide.