Monthly Archive for October, 2010

Beefaroni

Published on October 31, 2010 in Recipes. Closed

I don’t know that I ever had beefaroni from the box. And after making this recipe, I don’t know that I ever will. This is a super simple recipe, done in under 30 minutes, that just rocks.

Ingredients:
1.5 lbs of beef
1 finely chopped large onion
1 finely chopped red pepper
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups elbow macaroni
1 29-ounce can of tomato sauce (no added herbs or spices)
1 16-ounce can of chicken broth (I use low sodium)
1.5 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup shredded cheese (optional)

Cook the beef over medium high heat in a non-stick skillet until it is cooked through (7 minutes). Remove beef and most of the fat from the skillet then cook the onion, garlic and red pepper until they are fragrant and tender (3 minutes). Add macaroni, broth, tomato sauce, oregano, and beef to skillet and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally until the pasta is tender (8 minutes). Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with cheese. Eat and ENJOY!

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Dinner with the Porter family

Published on October 29, 2010 in Daily Rambling. 2 Comments

I have to say, there are few things I love more than going over to the Porter household for dinner. Their little girl is growing up into a perfect little toddler and is seriously the sweetest little thing on the face of this earth. And it never fails that something so ridiculous happens that it makes us cry from laughter.

So here is my example. They have two dogs. And those dogs are getting fat. And they have two chickens. Who haven’t laid any eggs. So after putting two and two together, it dawned on them that perhaps the chickens were laying the eggs in the yard and the dogs were eating them. Thereby explaining BOTH the no eggs and the fattening pups. How do you test your hypothesis?

Well you take a store-bought egg and set it in a pile of chicken poop. Then you watch both the chickens and dogs circle the egg trying to figure out what is going on. Then you watch your german short-hair pointer get close and the chickens freak out. Then the dog picks the egg up and carries out into the yard.

Unfortunately that is where the experiment ended for me. The egg had been outside for about 3 hours when I left and the only contact it had with the dogs, besides the initial move was some licking.

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Pittsburgh Wedding Invitation

Published on October 28, 2010 in Crafty and Design. Closed

Back in June Eric and I officially tied the knot. In California. Three thousand miles away from my family (or at least the ones that couldn’t make it out here).

So my parents have graciously offered to throw us a party back in Pittsburgh so that we can celebrate with all of my aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends so close to me that they might as well be siblings. And when you throw a party, you need an invitation, right?

I have to say, that when I have time, I love sitting down with Illustrator and making projects like this. (Please note that the gray squares are not part of the original design. I just don’t want riff raff showing up at this party and ruining it.)

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Primerose

Published on October 27, 2010 in Crafty and Sewing. Closed

So a while back I posted about these beautiful french patterns from Citronille. I ended up buying WAY more than I should have… and the cost of shipping was almost as much as the patterns themselves. But once they got here, any residual regret about the purchase disappeared. These patterns are so adorable.

Of course… they are in French however.

So it is a good thing that I never read the directions anyway, right?

The first pattern I attempted was the Primerose.

And without “following” the directions, this is what I made:

This picture is a little blurry, but it is okay because there are lots of flaws that I don’t want you to see. And suffice to say that this shirt is back into pieces and sitting on my ironing board awaiting a readjusted fate.

Its demise was brought on by the strange way it fit at my arms and by the fact that the collar was not sewn evenly. So I asked an expert for her opinion on how to make it even and fitted the top to my dress form. Once this little lady comes back out of the sewing room, she should be primed and all ready to go.

Although I am toying with the idea of making the collar in green or yellow corduroy and adding the same corduroy to the bottom as well. But what does it matter? It was 40 degrees outside this morning and it will be a long time before the tank tops come out of storage.

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A Halloween Treat

Published on October 27, 2010 in Daily Rambling. Closed

Eric treated us to something very special this Halloween season:

A fond memory of his childhood.

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Nothing Broken

Published on October 26, 2010 in I'm healthy. Closed

I had been worried that something more serious was going on with my tailbone. So I went to the doctor and had them take x-rays. Turns out that I am just a giant wimp when it comes to tailbone pain.

But then again… as long as the pain killers work, I wouldn’t worry.

Good thing I got a refill today.

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