I am a golden god on my day off

So I have a blissful day of nothing planned. But it took a lot of hard work! It seems like every Thursday at work we get tons of last minute orders and stuff and I end up going in on my day off. But I was determined to be home today. So, yesterday, I knocked out 2 doz cupcakes topped with Elmo sugar cookies, 2 german chocolate tortes (one for an order and one for Bluegrass Kitchen), one peanut butter torte, and one vanilla bean torte. Plus some cupcakes for the case. It took about 8 hours, but I got it all done.

And that meant that I could get up, take Hunt to school, and then do as little or as much as I like. And, so far, it's been very little. I heard Tiny Dancer in the car and I had to come home and get out Almost Famous immediately. I've been wanting to watch it again for ages but it always comes to mind at the wrong time. But today worked out perfectly.

I probably won't be this lazy all day though. I really need to get my seeds started for our little urban garden. My blueberry bushes should be in soon and I want to be able to get everything started around the same time.

The gardening should be made a little easier by the fact that Not-So-Ex is finally laid off for a bit. Today is his first day home so I'm gonna be nice and not start whining about things that need done. LOL

Tomorrow is the last of my daughter's birthday plans. We're having a Psych party for her filled with foods that feature pineapple! It should be a nice, calm, fun time. After we had such a good time with her new BFF, this will wrap up an excellent birthday. Or at least I thought it was pretty great.

Anyway, here's some Almost Famous...

And, since I can't mention music in movies without thinking of this, here's some 500 Days of Summer too...

Fourteen

Today my baby girl turns 14. I can hardly believe it.

I took her cupcakes at school today and she went around at lunch time and gave all her classmates cupcakes. And they were all so sweet and so was she.

Tomorrow, I'm taking her and her best friend (my daughter has a best friend!!!) to dinner and the movies after school. I think I'm as excited as they are.

It all feels so wonderful and normal and, considering some of our bad days, so unexpected. I truly couldn't ask for anything more.

Everyone should be over Jordan Catalano

So I spent my weekend either watching My So-Called Life on Netflix or looking for the remote so I could watch it or going to Wal-Mart to buy a new remote so I could watch it. Yeah, it was that kind of weekend.

By the end, when dear, awesome Angela ended up riding off into the distance with Jordan, I wanted to choke him out. LOL. But seriously, how many Jordan's did I date? How many guys did I credit with intelligence and introspection when they were really just not too bright? How many guys did I date that would have slept with my best friend and then tried to get me back (sadly, sometimes successfully)? Yep, folks, I've dated many good leaners in my life.

The thing that got me this time was how often I found myself identifying with the mom. The scene where Angela talks about never being pretty and the mom is completely dumbstruck... yeah, I've been that mom. The days of identifying with Angela are over, now I'm firmly in the mom category. Especially since my daughter turns 14 tomorrow. Four-effing-teen.

Anyway, I love the show. And I melted just a bit more when an Afghan Whigs' song played on one of the last few episodes. It was perfection.

But, just a warning Jordan Catalano, I've seen your future and it ain't pretty. Being the guy on the mountain that makes snow may be the best career path possible. Just sayin.

Important stuff!

So I tend to post recipes that include tons of sugar, but today I'm posting two very important recipes that need very little sugar!

I'm a big fan of pizza but I've gotten spoiled lately by places like Lola's and Pies and Pints. Last week we finally found the key to great pizzas, a great crust and white sauce.

First off, the crust recipe. Now, when I made this, I did it a bit differently than the instructions. I let it rise, like you normally would with bread, then punched it down, put it in the pans, and let it rise a bit while I made the sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups all-purpose flour 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon white sugar 1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Combine flour, salt, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Mix in oil and warm water. Spread out on a large pizza pan. Top as desired.
2.	Bake at 375 degrees C (190 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes.

Next is the white sauce. I had always assumed white pizzas used alfredo sauce. But I tried it and it wasn't quite right. Then I googled white pizza and found this weird recipe on Serious Eats that sounded awful. But we tried it (cause I mean it's Serious Eats, they know what they're talking about) and it was perfect. So here it is.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 2 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme or marjoram
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 
  
• In a heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 or 6 minutes, or until translucent. Add the garlic and stir for 1 minute longer. Add the cream, lower the heat to medium-low, and cook for about 3 minutes, or until the cream thickens and reduces slightly.

Remove from the heat, stir in the thyme, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Let cool

completely before using.

Little changes

So it seems like forever since I blogged. And, if it helps, I constantly berate myself for not doing it. But, I also have this whole life I've gotta take care of. LOL

The biggest change that has happened is that I am no longer a car-less punk. It had been getting more and more difficult to share Not-So-Ex's car. He was constantly having to sacrifice so that I would have the car to get the kids and I where we needed to be. So he laid down the law and said I needed a vehicle.

We talked quite a bit about it and decided that what we needed was a new vehicle (a first for me since I've always bought used) that was very basic, had a good reputation, was just big enough for our whole family, and was good on gas.

We narrowed it down online to a few makes and models with Ford Fiesta and Toyota Yaris being our primary interests. We looked at the Fords first and, while they were nice, they were a bit more than I wanted to spend and they weren't dealing much since they're brand new.

Then we checked out the Yaris and, while they were super cute, they were tiny and, although that appeals to me, I do have a husband that's almost 6'6 so that becomes an issue. Plus, there was a little sticker on the window that said the car was 100% made in Japan. I didn't think it would bother me, even though my hubs is a big union, made-in-America guy and so is my Dad, but seeing it printed out like that got to me. And I just couldn't do it.

When we were looking at the Yaris, we looked across the lot and saw what looked like a larger version. Both Not-So-Ex and I liked the look of it, so we checked it out. Turns out, it's called a Matrix and, while it was a little bit more than the Yaris, they were more than happy to deal on it.

After we looked at them that first time, we were both pretty smitten. I came home, did some research and saw that the gas mileage was great, they were 75% made in North America, and they had a pretty good safety record. So that night, Hubs, Hunt, & I checked out a few more and I fell for a bright red one. And we drove it home that night!

Oh the things I do...

So my love of hair dye, bleach, and my recent Manic Panic addiction is well known. But I do believe it got a little out of hand this week.

Last weekend, I put some more blue streaks in my hair, but I wasn't crazy about them. I didn't leave the dye in as long as I should have so the streaks were uneven; some were really dark blue, some were lighter, and some bordered on aqua. Being the rocket scientist that I am, I thought that, since I like lighter hair in the Spring and Summer, I could bleach my hair and lighten it overall and get rid of the blue at the same time.

I was wrong.

I ended up with mostly white hair and light blue areas (I don't think they can even be called streaks anymore). I was understandably freaked out. I've spent the better part of my lifetime as a blonde, but I'm not sure it's ever been THIS blonde.

Me right after the dye job (I'll post better pics later)

While I was definitely freaked, I haven't felt the need to really fix it yet. More than anything, I wanna let my hair rest a bit before I try something else. This week, hot oil, deep conditioners, and toners have been my BFFs.

In other news, the kiddos will be home soon. I can't wait! I've missed my little heatherns. I spent last night babying Lucy the Asthmatic Demon Dog. It appears that, in addition to parvo and asthma, she also has seizures. So far this evening, she seems ok so I'm hoping to get some rest.

Last weekend, Not-So-Ex got a new tattoo. Or at least most of one.

Not-So-Ex's not-so-finished tatt

He was under the needle for three hours straight and, when it still wasn't done, they had to stop with the plan being to let it heal a bit and then finish it in a couple weeks. While his looks great, the best part is that, once his is finished, it's my turn! Right now I'm torn between getting two more on my back or getting a quarter sleeve. Either plan will feature a cupcake though.

Ooh! One other bit of silliness. As everyone knows, I'm sure, entertainment news everywhere has been all Charlie Sheen all the time. And here is my favorite bit. Enjoy folks!