Till Then Smile Often

November 14, 2013

Distract the Sickness

So if you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram then you know I have been fighting a stomach bug since Tuesday morning. I haven’t been able to keep much down and ginger ale and saltines were my friends.

I tried going into work on Wednesday but I ended up getting sick twice in the bathroom so I went home early. Enough about that though as I am hopefully on the mend. I am going to share with you some of the things I did to distract myself while home sick.

1. I watched shows on Netflix. I finished Season 3 of the Walking Dead, they don’t have the new season though and I can’t watch the new ones online but I am recording the new ones now but I need to figure out how to watch episode 2-5. Then it was on to Hart of Dixie! Don’t judge I had a lot of time on my hands.

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2. For those who like to knit or crochet you may or may not know about Ravelry which is an online database of patterns. You can search and add to your queue, add notes about the yarn you used and anything that would help you in making it again, even upload a pic of the completed project to help you remember it. Well whenever i get the bug to knit something I search it for ideas and I found this cute hat/hood with scarf that I am going to knit up.

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3. Besides the couch and the bathroom Seamus was my only other thing to look at most of the day so I took a bajillion pictures of him. Besides he totally entertains me with the positions he gets into and where he gets comfortable. He turned himself into a burrito all by himself. He was trying to bury himself under the covers too. Sorry I can’t help it he is just too cute!

4. I check out all my social media including Facebook where I saw this gem!! My wine loving friends will enjoy this one. Forget the Vino2Go cups you have a wine box to go!! They are launching their website on November 15 so get ready to order. Talk about a great Christmas present.

Photo: COMPETITION TIME! To celebrate the launch of our shiny new website on 15th November we are offering 1 lucky lady the chance to WIN a FREE Cosmopolitan DrinksBag! Simply 'like' and 'share for the chance to win! Winner announced next Friday 15th!

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Well that is all i have the energy for right now. Time for a nap. I will try to catch up with everyone soon.

November 12, 2013

Bacon Big Mac Cheeseburger Salad

Isn’t that title a mouthful? Well it should be because if was so full of flavor it deserves a hefty name! If you saw my post on Friday you may have noticed this salad that I had pinned and was hoping to try this weekend! Well I tried it on Saturday night, and then on Sunday afternoon, and then Monday for lunch! It was that good!! So I decided to share it so you can all enjoy the amazing-ness of this salad! The dressing along is worthy of pinning.

Ingredients:

Dressing: 2 TBSP mayonnaise ~ 2 TBSP sour cream or yogurt (I used Greek yogurt) ~ 2 TBS ketchup ~ 2 TSP water ~ 1 TSP white vinegar ~ 1 TBSP sweet pickle relish ~ 1 TBSP minced white onion ~ 1 TSP sugar ~ Dash Tabasco sauce, or hot sauce ~ 1 TSP salt

Burger Ingredients: 2 TSP olive oil ~ 1 large sweet onion, chopped ~ 2 cloves garlic, minced ~ 1 pound lean ground beef

Salad: Head of Romaine lettuce ~ 2 large ripe tomatoes, chopped ~ 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese ~ dill pickle slices (optional- but not really put them on the salad you won’t regret it) ~ Sprinkle of Real Bacon Bits

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Directions: In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise, sour cream, ketchup, water, vinegar, relish, onion, sugar, Tabasco, and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Set aside. NOTE: Since I used Greek yogurt it ended up runnier than I wanted so I ended up adding a bit more mayo and a little more ketchup. After tasting I added a bit more hot sauce until it was at the level of spice I wanted. Double, or triple just for having around, because it is that good!

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium. Add the onion and saute for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the ground beef and cook for about 6-7 minutes, stirring occasionally and crumble the meat with your spatula. Add the garlic and stir constantly for 30 seconds, until fragrant and the meat is fully browned. Remove pan from heat and set aside while you assemble the salad.

Assemble romaine lettuce, tomato, pickles and cheese into a bowl and top with the beef mixture. Serve with 2 TBSP of the dressing and add some Real Bacon bits to the top. Serve and enjoy!

Since it is a salad you won’t feel as blotted like you would from a trip through the drive through, so go made it! That is an order! 😉

Linking up with Jessica and Ashley.

November 11, 2013

Short and Sweet

There won’t be much to this post because there really wasn’t much to this weekend. I spent the majority of it raking my front lawn then my back yard and watching The Walking Dead. I took one or two naps but really who’s counting?!

Saturday: I headed out early to Old Navy for a new Sweatshirt and then to Lowe’s for some lawn bags. Then a quick grocery trip. Then I spent 2.5 hours raking leaves and bagging everything up. Twelve bags later I took a break. Did some chores around the house in between episodes of the Waking Dead.

A little snuggle session with Seamus // A huge salad for fuel before raking // A good 12 bags from the front yard // Bacon Big Mac Salad – recipe coming soon

Sunday: A little more of the same, raking the back yard, house chores, watching the Walking Dead (I am up to Season 3), and snuggle time with Seamus. He was a cuddly little bugger this weekend. Not that I am complaining. He even took the lead and let me know when it was time for a nap.

I had to do a little meal prep first though.

Then it was a little bit of this…

then a little bit of this…

and this…

How could I resist napping with that little lazy bones.

This post isn’t complete without sharing my complete and absolute appreciation to all the veteran’s who have served and are currently serving in the military. To my Dad especially who is a Vietnam veteran. It is with thanks to them that we have the freedoms that we have today.

Linking up with Sami at Sami’s Shenanigans and Leann at Join the Gossip .

November 8, 2013

The Sound of Music

Happy Friday! My title has NOTHING to do with this post but seriously I end up singing that song in my head every Friday when coming up with my five favorite things for the week. I want to say I am looking forward to this weekend but it is looking like the majority of it will be spent raking my lawn AGAIN!! It is completely covered in leaves after only a week! 🙁 I guess I don’t really mind though because it is kinda pretty, and it counts as half a workout.

One. Speaking of workouts, I will be at the gym most of the weekend so in case you are looking for me that is where I will be! Catch you on the flipside!

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Two. This totally made me think of Kat from Vodka and Soda and Steph from Life According to Steph. Two of my favorite blogs, if you are not reading their blogs already what the @#$%$# are you waiting for!!

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Three. This recipe for Cheeseburger Salad with Big Mac dressing for No Sugar No Grain diet looks amazing and I think I will be making it this weekend.

Cheeseburger Salad with Big Mac Dressing--For #NSNG, perhaps use a bit of tomato paste instead of ketchup and omit sugar

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Four. Trying out a new pale ale and it was pretty delish!

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Five. This is so my dog!! He looks back at his butt all startled that something came out! I totally laughed at this and maybe snort laughed.

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Hope you love bugs have a fantabulous weekend! Big hugs!

November 6, 2013

Reasons Why I Suck

Sometimes as bloggers we post only the pretty things, the best pictures (out of 100), and the projects that are a success and none of the failures. I am GUILTY of this too. Sometimes if a pic is just for Instagram I will just take one picture, but if it is for a blog post I can take up to 25-50 shots (all different angles of course, with different props) and then choose the best one. However I am human and my life is far from perfect, I am far from perfect. So here are some reasons why I suck….

1. Right now just about every surface of my house needs to be dusted. October has been hectic and I don’t think I have done it once. Vacuum, sweeping, laundry, moping, wash my sheets done that, but dusting nope. I was sadly reminded of it this morning. I think with the heat kicking in it is a little dustier than normal. It is on my list to do this weekend though. I SUCK! *UPDATE: I dusted every surface of my house this past weekend Woohoo!!**

2. I sometimes choose to spend time alone than to go out. I get overwhelmed when I don’t have time to decompress and to veg out. Between work, Seamus, the gym, and blogging I don’t have time to do so during the week so the weekends are it. Too many events and I shut down. I SUCK!

3. Sometimes I don’t return emails because I don’t know what else to say. Sometimes I think a million things in my head of how to respond and then decide nothing would be best. I SUCK!

4.Sometimes I talk too much about myself and I have to remember to listen more, and talk less. It is usually because I am trying to connect or relate to what someone is saying, but I just need to shut up sometimes. I SUCK!

5. I get really frustrated when I am trying to learn something new. This comes down to my perfectionist Type A personality, but sometimes I need to remember to cut myself some slack! I SUCK!

I am stopping at five things because really that is all my ego can take right now.

P.S. Sorry for the cussing, but stupid, or stink just wouldn’t have the same impact!

And because we all know that every blog post has to have at least one photo or you have failed at life 😉 here is some pics from my last cake decorating class.

The basket weave border technique

Rope border and flowers which I still need to practice

Please tell me I am not alone and that sometimes you suck too!!

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