New Year's Resolution

I am not a fan of New Year’s resolutions. Never made one. I really do not understand the point. If I really want to lose weight or do something different in my life I do not wait for a new year to start my plan.

I am so tired of hearing the phrase “A new year, a new you”. Really? Haven’t we been hearing that same phrase since the 80’s and yet people still chose the same New Year’s resolutions.

An article in Yahoo today was about how to get out of debt in 2011. How about you run that article prior to the Holiday shopping season so people do not overspend on gifts!

Another thing that bugs me about the people that decide they are going to lose weight for their New Year resolution is that from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve stuff their faces with candy, McDonald’s, and anything else they should not be eating. Those people are doomed at failure. It takes small steps to change a person’s eating habit. Going from engorging themselves in high fat foods to eating like a bird is not going to work.

For my weight loss I knew putting on weight was going to happen around this time of year because of my surgery. Am I making it my resolution to get the weight off? No! I am working on making sure that weight comes of sooner rather than later. Since last week I have been able 2.6 pounds off from the 4 I put on! It is not a resolution but my lifestyle. Oh yeah, forgot to tell you all I am now down to 137.4. Only a pound or two to go and I will be satisfied.

New Year’s Eve really has never been my thing. Tony and I normally have people over or stay at home by ourselves. Heck some years we were sleeping before midnight. This year we are going to go out to a pub. Our first time out in many years on New Year’s Eve. I have to wonder if we will make it to midnight!

Genetics

I have a love hate relationship by my genetics. There are many features I like and others not so much.

I am so thankful I did not get my mom’s ugly pinky toe. All my brother’s did. I got my dad’s cheek bones that I like. Hate being short but I can deal with it. My chances of heart disease are pretty high but I manage with my diet.

But the one thing I never thought I would see at my age just started showing up a few months ago. I have my dad’s forehead. I always knew my forehead took after grandma. It is high and defined and I liked it. But mix that with Dad’s wrinkles at the age of 28 and it is not looking so good now. I started trying collagen filler hoping it will help reduce the appearance of lines and it is NOT working. I need to find something stronger and I am not about to have a face lift before I turn 30…maybe when I turn 40. These wrinkles are not small baby wrinkles. They stretch straight across end to end of my forehead and there are three deep lines. Why do I have these? I am so young. Thank you genetics. Not even make up is reducing the appearance.

The other thing I hate the most other than my wrinkles is my ability to put on weight with little effort. I bust my butt to stay thin and it is so easy to put on weight. I have to eat like a rabbit to lose any weight. Since my knee surgery on December 8th I put on 4 pounds. It may not seem like a big deal to many but for me it takes a long time to get 4 pounds off. I knew I was going to put on weight after my surgery. With the holidays and the fact I was unable to exercise for three weeks really put damper on things. I finally got on my treadmill last night but am only able to walk at 2.5 with no incline. Never going to get the weight off going that speed for only 20 minutes! Saturday I weighed in at 140 pounds. Today was 138.6. Glad to see a few down but not good enough. The lowest I got to is when we were in Curacao in May. I was around 130-131. It was too skinny for me so not upset when I put on a few pounds. My happy weight is around 135-136 and I hope I get there by the time Tony and I go to Arizona. I am happy my size 4’s still fit me but a little snug. Mainly around my enormous ass.

I am sure genetics will continue to bit me in the ass as I get older. Speaking of my ass. I’ve about had it with my butt dimples. I slather on the cellulite cream every morning and every night. It does minimize the appearance but now I have to be careful with the pants I buy. If they are too thin I can see the dimples smiling through my pants. I started getting cellulite at the age of 24. It just did not show up dimple by dimple. One morning I woke up and discovered the collagen in my legs turned into a vacuum cleaner and sucked as much fat through as it could creating my butt dimples. I guess I cannot be too upset since about 80 to 90 percent of women have them. St. Ives Cellulite cream is what I use to minimize them.

The last thing that really bugged me about my genetics is my boobs. Ever since I was a little girl I looked at my mom then at her sisters and thought to myself I am going to have a nice rack. Well it never happened for me. My mom and my aunts are all D’s if not double DD’s and there I am with my tiny little A’s. Really….what the hell happened? Here I am now, the only one in my family that had to pay for my boobs and I still have the smallest chest. I bought C’s but they turned into D’s two years later when I had a growth spurt.

For now a feature I really love is my hair. I am not sure who in my family I got this thick head of blonde hair from. Bill and Jon both have thick blonde hair too. I have two stubborn gray hairs that show up every now and then but I pull them out. Nice thing with blonde hair is they hide out.

I just can’t wait as the years go on to find out more about my love hate relationship with genetics.

I Finished The Lost Dogs!

I finished The Lost Dogs yesterday. My favorite story in the book was about Jonny Justice who used to be named Jonny Rotten by Vick. I first saw a picture of Jonny on the cover of PARADE in my Sunday paper on August 15. I ready about his story in PARADE and saved the paper waiting for The Lost Dogs book to be released. The story of Jonny is very inspiring. He was scared of everything when he went to his foster home. In the end Jonny passed the American Temperament Test, Canine Good Citizens certificate, and is a certified Therapy Dog. Jonny works in a programmed called Paws for Tails. Yes, that is Jonny in the picture!

“It was a reading program for children run through Peninsula Humane Society and SPCA. It was designed to get kids into the library and reading, but also allow kids who lacked confidence in their reading abilities to practice out loud in front of one of the most receptive and nonjudgmental audiences they’d ever find.”

Isn’t it incredible that Jonny Justice was a Vick dog! This really shows how all dogs need a purpose in life and most can overcome the worst of conditions and behaviors. Many of the Vick dogs did end up earning the Canine Good Citizens certificate and a few others did pass the Therapy Dog test.

Jasmine’s story was very touching and heartbreaking all at the same time. I do not want to give away too much about Jasmine so you will have to buy Jim Gorant’s book!

It was ironic I finished this book at the same time President Obama called the Philadelphia Eagle’s coach and congratulated him on giving Vick a second chance. I voted for President Obama and support most of the ideas and policies but this pissed me off. I am one that can look at two different perspectives before drawing a conclusion. I do believe Vick does deserve a second chance to make things right for what he did and get a job but not being the quarterback for the Eagles pulling in millions of dollars each year. Are you kidding me? Tony and I do not agree so much on this subject because Vick does have an amazing talent when it comes to football but I feel he should not be allowed to play again in the NFL. For me it is hard to believe people can overcome certain behaviors. I do not believe pedophiles are ever cured and do not believe animal abusers ever lose that desire to harm. Some argue that President Obama’s message is that we can all give people a second chance at redemption. Give me a break. The message criminals see is “great, I can screw up, rob some banks, shot someone, and if I get caught I can be like Vick and get a second chance.” Sorry to upset some of you but that is my view.

There were so many people and organizations that took part in the redemption of the Vick dogs. So many more stories of heartbreak and triumph and more education than I could have imagined when I bought the book. I highly recommend you buy this book next time you are in Barnes and Noble or order it off of Amazon right now! This book is now my favorite book of all time…even passing up Marley and Me.

Thank you Jim for writing The Lost Dogs!

http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Dogs-Michael-Rescue-Redemption/dp/1592405509/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293551374&sr=8-1

Here is a link to BAD RAP’s blog page. http://badrap-blog.blogspot.com/

Just because the book ended does not mean the stories of the Vick Dogs do. Follow them on blogger. http://vickdogsblog.blogspot.com/

Our Christmas Weekend

Christmas morning Tony woke up to find Sydney laying down by the tree waiting for her yearly gigantic rawhide bone. She has no interest in any of the toys. Jack and Oscar enjoyed opening their gifts and were upset when they ran out. When we gave Jack his bone he kept whining. I let him outside and he buried it under a juniper and covered it with mulch! We never saw him do that before. Milo usually finds a home in gift bags but this year we bought him a cat house that he loves…or at least did at the moment.

Yes most of those gifts are for the pets

Tony bought me some clothing I wanted from Macy’s, a bunch of Laura Mercier make up and two rings I liked from BCBG. I bought him Harley parts and surprised him with an engraved cigar holder and cutter. He really liked it.

For Christmas dinner we spent it with our friends. Misty is pregnant and with my bloating by the end of the meal I think my stomach was just as big as hers. I hate having bloating issues. It does not take much to irritate my stomach.

We bought Evan a blow up ball pit in the shape of a car. Not sure how much he liked it since we did not get a chance to blow it up but he did like the balls.

After dinner we played Pictionary. A favorite game among my friends. I was surprised I had the energy. With my sinus infection I end up having to take a nap during the day. During the game is started snowing. Snow on Christmas? Yes it did happen. It probably will be many years before we ever see snow on Christmas again. We ended up with about 6 to 8 inches!

The next day I was ready to get all the Christmas stuff put away. I just cannot leave it up for New Year’s like many people do. Again like I ranted about Christmas trees on Thanksgiving…New Year’s and Christmas are two separate holidays. My house is put back to normal. This is the first time since the remodel that our house has no seasonal decorations. I love my house. I think the slate on the fireplace sets it off.

I decided to venture out to Kohl’s which is only two miles away. It was my first time driving since my surgery. The roads were not plowed but there were paths. Tony could not believe of all days for me to attempt driving I chose that day. I told him since it snowed there are not many people out there for me to hit. I did make it to Kohl’s but I can tell if I had to slam on the brakes I would hurt my knee. I kept my left foot close to the brake in case I had to use it. I used my Kohl’s give card from Grandma and Tony’s mom to redecorate my half bathroom. It was OK before but really did not have a theme. I went with a beach theme in there. Tony said it feels like his pissing in the ocean. Now I just need to find a white distressed mirror to finish the look.

Christmas Eve Dinner

Christmas Eve was just Tony and me. I still am sick and it took all my energy to make dinner. After dinner we put out the Christmas gift under the tree and watched Love Actually. I love that movie. The dogs were already trying to get into their gifts. So funny how they know Christmas.


I made a ham, stuffing, and vegetables for our Christmas Eve dinner. The stuffing was AMAZING! I always dread homemade stuffing. Many if not most people have no idea how to make it. Me including. I got this recipe from Tastefully Simple. Tony wants me to make it all the time now.



Creamy Wild Rice Stuffing

Creamy Wild Rice Soup Mix - Tastefully Simple
5 cups hot water
2 tsp. Garlic Garlic - Tastefully Simple
2–3 Tbsp. Onion Onion - Tastefully Simple
6–8 slices diced bacon
4 stalks diced celery
14 oz. bag seasoned bread cubes
½ cup dried cranberries
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine first 4 ingredients; simmer 60 minutes. Sauté bacon in large skillet until browned; add celery. Cook until celery is tender. Toss bread cubes in large bowl with bacon mixture and cranberries. Add prepared soup, and season to taste with salt and pepper; mix well. Place stuffing in greased 9 x 13 baking pan; cover with foil. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes. Remove foil; bake an additional 10-15 minutes. Serve hot. Makes 10-12 servings.




The ham recipe I pulled off of Oprah's website a few years ago. This is the best ham recipe I came across through the years.

Glazed Ham

10 – 15 pound bone in cured ham (not spiral ham)

Glaze:
1 cup light brown sugar
¾ cup mustard
¼ cup honey
¼ cup orange juice
½ ts cayenne pepper

Score rind of ham with tip of a paring knife forming 1/2 inch diamonds

Place in oven at 350 degrees until ham temp reaches 140 degrees, about 2 – ½ hours. Combine glaze ingredients. Remove ham from oven and brush the glaze generously over ham. Return ham to oven for 90 minutes and brush with glaze every 30 minutes.

Add flour to pan drippings to make gravy. Add small amounts of flour until it reaches the right consistency of gravy.

I cut the ham and brushed more the glaze on the meat. Put it back in the oven for a few minutes. I was perfect.



Now for dessert! OMG was this good. I am trying to keep my winter weight off and not doing so well. I found this dessert by Hungry Girl. Click on the link for the recipe.
http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/show/1850



I did find the crust was not enough. Instead of four sheets of crackers I used in package inside the box and double the light butter.

Pit Bull Education

I am getting close to being done with The Lost Dogs. I knew I was going to read about the triumphs of the Michael Vick dogs but what I did not expect to get from the book was an education. I thought I knew about pit bulls before reading this book and I discovered there is so much more to the breed’s history that I did not know about.

The rescue group, BAD RAP, which had a huge part in the rehabilitation of the Vick dogs, discovered pit bulls like to have their face lightly blown on. They see it as an invitation for face to face contact. They used this method when evaluating pit bulls. A negative or neutral reaction indicates the dog is not as people friendly. My dog Sydney loves to have her face blown on. Tony and I do suspect she does have pit bull in her. Her face and ears resemble a pit bull but her fat ass body is more of a lab.

I liked this evaluation of dogs breed for fighting that Gorant wrote about.

“And breeding a dog to fight is different than breeding it for other traits. There’s nothing about herding or retrieving or pulling a sled that goes against the dog’s internal drives. But creating a dog that wants to attack other dogs is at odds with twelve thousand years of evolution, a period of time in which dogs were instilled with the instinct to work together in a pack to survive. Centuries of breeding based on mutual dependence goes far deeper than fifty or even one hundred years of manipulation to encourage a desire to harm.”

This is so true! Now it makes even more sense why 80 percent of dogs breed for fighting will not even scratch at another dog. It is just not in their nature to.

Another lesson I learned was how the media portrayal of certain breeds increases the fear and at the same time increases the population. In the 19th century it was bloodhounds that were feared as pit bulls are today. Followed by the German shepherd then the Doberman. “In 1964 there were 4,815 new Doberman registrations filed with the American Kennel Club. By 1979 there were 80,363 new Doberman registered, making it the second most popular breed in the United States.” Now with the pit bull it seems it needs some time before another breed is deemed dangerous. Just in one year from 1983 to 1984 pit bull registrations grew by 30 percent after they were labeled the new most dangerous dog with many more not registered. “The breed, which had existed in some form for hundreds of years, didn’t suddenly lose control. The dogs simple fell into the hands of many people who had no interest in control.”

Right now I am in the Redemption section of the book. I LOVE reading about Jonny and Jasmine. I will give you all an overview of their cases in the next post.

More on The Lost Dogs

It is so hard to put The Lost Dogs down! This is one of the most interesting books I read in a very long time. Truth is I do not read books much. It takes a lot to keep me interested. I maybe read anywhere from 2 – 5 a year and this will be the second book I finish this week. I just finish reading A Meal to Die For by Joseph Gannascoli. For those of you that watched the Sopranos he played Vito. I bought the book from him while on the Sopranos tour in NYC. I tried to keep it as neat as possible while reading it since he signed it. The book was a good read of those that like stories about the mob. It did keep me in suspense. I really enjoy biography book and true stories about people have gone through to get to where they are today. Maybe that is why I love The Lost Dogs so much. My compassion for animals and the underdog has me hooked.

In my reading yesterday I learned that one of Michael Vick’s dog fighting associates suggested they give the dogs away that refused to fight. Vick wanted them killed instead and participated in the killing. Many very brutal deaths. At one point in the book I slammed it down after reading about how he killed one of the dogs. Currently in the media Michael Vick wants to get a dog for his daughter and right now he is banned from owning animals. May people believe he put in his time and understands how wrong he was but when I read this book I truly believe there is no way this man is cured. Sure he may not turn his daughter’s dog into a fighting dog but I do believe there will be abuse by hand. Someone like him that used a dog as a jump rope, banging it against the ground until she was dead does not change.

Again the question comes up to people as to why should we care about animal abuse. This part of the book provides another explanation.

“Law enforcement was beginning to realize this was a common connection: Bust a dogfight and they were bound to find people guilty of other crimes, not just drug users and gun toters but drug dealers and illegal-weapons traffickers. Studies had also shown that animal cruelty is lined to other types of domestic battery, including spousal and child abuse and it desensitizes witnesses to violence.”

I also love this part of the book that provides a brief history.

“So even as they became better fighters, these dogs became friendlier and more responsive to people. There are few breeds in the world that thrive more on human attention. The desire to please, to get the pat on the head, is part of what drives theme to persist in the pit. It is also why they were always known as great family pets. In the 1800s the breed had a nickname in Great Britain: nanny dogs, because they were so great with children. Petey of The Little Rascals, a Staffordshire terrier, was said to have been chosen specifically because the producers wanted a dog that would be good around kids. Buster Brown’s dog, Tige was also a pit bull, as a World War I hero Stubby, who helped sniff out German spies and find wounded soldiers as part of the 102nd Infantry.”

So how, with this great name, did the pit bull end up being known as born killers? I do not wonder where the dogs went wrong but where humans went wrong. Again, Gorant pulls through to my question.

“In the 1980s the number of pit bulls grew and as it did so did the number of pit bull incidents. Combined with their fighting past, the dogs quickly earned a bad reputation, and when a few savage mauling took place, they became outright pariahs. Suddenly, any pit bull incident became the equivalent of a share attack, guaranteeing a flush of screaming headlines and creating and urban mythology.”

So where did humans go wrong? Stupid people. My true belief is these dogs land in the hands of bad people. Men who need a pit bull to make them feel more manly and make up for other areas they are lacking in. These people who know nothing about pit bulls when it comes to caring for them and training them to be wonderful additions so society.

With all the bite statistics I have to wonder how many of the people bitten was it their own fault. I’ve been bitten by four dogs. One was my childhood dog, Snickers. She was a Springer Spaniel. I still have a scare on my hand to show where I was bitten. The bite was my fault. We introduced a new dog into the family and they broke out into a fight. I tried breaking it up and was an accidental casualty.

The second dog I was bitten by was my uncle’s dog. A German Shepherd. Again my fault. I was petting him on the head when my dumb ass cousins and brothers were lighting off fireworks that scared him. He bit me on the arm. Not hard. No blood was drawn. Ok…so my cousins’ fault.

Third was the pit bull that came at me when I was walking Jack. He barley bit down and I do blame incompetent owners on this one.

My pissy little Shih Tzu bit me a few times on purpose. I was doing something to make him mad and my fault for not training him better.

I am just about halfway through the book. More of my thoughts and great writing by Jim Gorant to come!

The Michael Vick Dogs

Last night I started reading The Lost Dogs Michael Vick’s dogs and their tale of Rescue and Redemption. I am only about 40 some pages in and this is an incredibly powerful book. By the second chapter I was already crying. The details of what the dogs went through are so inhumane. I wonder how it is even possible for anyone to think this is OK. There were a few sections of the book I marked off that really touched me.

The first section that suck with me was when the author, Jim Gorant, was addressing the criticism as to why people should even care about this story since they are just dogs.

“Men first domesticated dogs more than ten thousand years ago, when our ancestors were hunting for their meals and sleeping next to open fires at night. Dogs were instant helpers in our struggle for survival. They guarded us in the dark and helped us find food by day…..Certainly as man rose in the world, dogs came with us, perhaps even aiding the advance. They continued to guard us and help with hunting, but they did more. They marched with armies into war, they worked by our side, hauling, pulling, herding, retrieving…..In return we brought them into our homes, made them part of our families. We offered them love and companionship, and they returned the gesture….As to why our bond matters, there are reasons for that, too. If you hang around animal activists for a while, you’ll inevitably hear repeated a famous Gandhi quote: ‘The greatness of our nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.’ The idea being that in order to lift the whole society, you must first prop up the lowest among its many parts. If you show goodwill and kindness toward those who cannot stand up for themselves, you set a tone of compassion and good will that permeates all.”

WOW! Was that powerful. There was more reading in between the …. But these parts stood out to me the most. It explains why our beloved companions are more than “just dogs”. My response to the Gandhi quote: China is screwed.

The next section that stood out to me was about dogs ability to hear and smell. We all heard dogs can hear and smell better than people but did you know they can detect odors 100 million times more faint than people can and they can hear a heart beats five feet away. This is amazing. Their ability to hear heart beats is what gives them the insight into the mood and disposition of the people and animals they come in contact with. It makes sense now why when I watch Cesar Millan says to have a calm assertive energy. If you are calm your heart will not be racing out of fear.

The next stand out in the book was a truly amazing statistic.

“One experienced law officer estimates that 80 percent of the dogs, even those raised in a professional fighting operation, won’t even scratch. That is, they won’t even cross the line and engage the other dog.”

How amazing is that? Our society gives pit bulls such a bad rap. We claim they are born fighters when the truth is they are not. The book describes in detail what the dogs go through to be trained as fighters. It is horrific and even more disturbing is how they kill the dogs that will not fight. While reading the book it made me cry when I read about when these dogs were rescued they were scared when the officers put out their hands to pet them. The only touch they ever experience was abuse.

I look at my dogs and thank God they are in my life. Jack, my German Shepherd mix came from a very bad back ground. I am not sure what all happened to him before I adopted him. He is scared when voices are raised or even just people that are loud. He is scare of anything that resembles a stick he can be beaten with. He has gotten better or the years. My bow for karate really scared him. I would put the bow by my side and sit next to Jack and pet him showing him it is OK. I know if Jack had been one of those dogs chosen for dog fighting he would have been in that 20% that would have fought. He has that protection instinct. As I mentioned before in previous blogs about Jack, he has an aggression problem with other dogs outside his pack. He was not like that when I adopted him. He ignored other dogs and did not even try to sniff them or make contact when we walked. He was amazing. Then, not even four months after I adopted him I was attacked by another dog when I was walking him. My reaction was to protect Jack. He cowered and did not do anything back to the dog. When the owner got the dog off of me she started punching it. Gee…wonder where that aggression came from. The next weekend when I took Jack for a walk he was prepared attack every dog that passed us to protect me. He is fine at doggy daycare when he can play with other dogs and I am not there to protect. But when I am around he really has that instinct to put fear into any dog that comes by. I hate that he is like this now. Through a lot of work he now whines to meet the dog rather than growls but I know as soon as he meets it will turn into aggression. When friends bring their dogs over and they meet in the back yard with no leases on he does much better. He still will bit but not draw blood. More of a nip to show who is boss. I do warn my friends about this prior to them meeting. Some are OK with it and others not so much. I do appreciate the ones that are willing to work with us since it helps his rehabilitation.

Back to the book. I still have a lot more reading to do. As I come across other interesting parts of the book I will share.

New Blog Name

With the end of 2010 just around the corner I realized I need a new blog name. Any suggestions?

Peanut Butter Blossoms

These are my favorite cookie! I make mine with crushed peanuts and it adds a completely different texture.

Peanut Butter Blossoms

½ cup butter
2/3 cup peanut butter
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 tb milk
1 ts vanilla
1 ½ cup flour
1/3 cup chopped peanuts
1 ts baking soda
½ ts salt
48 Hershey Kisses

Preheat oven to 375. Beat butter, peanut butter, 1/3 sugar, and brown sugar into large bowl until light and fluffy. Add egg, milk, and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and peanuts in small bowl. Stir and gradually add to butter mixture until well blended.
Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll in remaining 1/3 cup sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet.

Bake 9 minutes. Immediately press Hershey kiss into center of each cookie. Cool on baking sheet for 1 minutes then move to wire rack.

Sick Sick Sick

My knee surgery was almost two weeks ago. I am moving around a little better each day. Today I get my stitches out. I still cannot drive. It really sucks to have to rely on people to take me to and from work and have Tony take me shopping. At least he got a glimpse into what I do on the weekends. Some days I do not think he realizes everything that goes into running a house. Everything from the cooking, cleaning, shopping, caring for the dogs, paying bills and everything else in between. It is a lot of work and I can’t imagine how much harder it must be on parents.

Last week Tony caught the flu from a guy at work. He refused to stay at home and took out about half the office. I ended up getting it Friday night. It hit fast and hard. I slept most of the weekend. My boss let me work from home on Monday since she did not want to catch it. I am working from home today as well since Tony has to take me to my doctor’s appointment. I can tell the flu is gone but now I have a sinus infection. Sucks really bad. I found some prescription nasal spray and have been using Musinex. Even the Neti Pot has issues getting through my clogged sinuses. This is so not fun right before Christmas. I made cookies and candy for us but am worried to eat it since my germs are all over it. Tony does not seem to be too concerned since they are just about all eaten up. I really hope I am feeling better by Christmas Eve.

Artichoke Cups

This recipe is from Pampered Chef. I tried making it low fat and it did not taste nearly as good as the real thing. I do recommend this recipe in the full fat version if you are looking for a great appetizer to serve at your next party.

Elegant Artichoke Cups

1 tbsp vegetable oil
24 square wonton wrappers
1 can (14 oz) artichoke hearts in water, drained and coarsely chopped
½ medium red bell pepper
½ cup (2 oz ) shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup (1 oz) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 lemon
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 garlic clove, pressed
Additional grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly brush one side of each wonton with oil. Press one wonton wrapper into each cup of a mini-muffin pan. Bake 6 minutes or just until edges of wontons are light golden brown. Remove from oven; set aside, leaving wontons in pan.

2. Meanwhile, coarsely chop artichokes; place in bowl. Remove seeds from bell pepper and dice. Zest lemon to measure ½ tsp zest. Finely chop parsley. Add bell pepper, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, lemon zest, parsley, mayonnaise and garlic pressed to bowl. Mix well. Fill each wonton cup with about 1 tbsp of artichoke mixture; sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese. Bake 8 minutes or until edges of wontons are golden brown and cheese begins to melt. Remove from oven to cooling rack. Remove wontons from pan; serve immediately. Yield: 24 appetizers

Chocolate Fudge...YUM

This is by far the best chocolate fudge recipe I ever made. It is so easy. I like my fudge with nuts but Tony does not so the picture does not show it with nuts. Two years ago we bought fudge from Fudge Boat in Carolina Beach. It did not even compare to this recipe and I was very dissappointed because the fudge was not cheap. Two months later when we went back to Carolina Beach I brought my own fudge as a snack. Use a good quality chocolate when making this such as Ghirardelli.

Chocolate Fudge

3 cups (18 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
Dash of salt
½ to 1 cup desired nuts
1 ½ ts vanilla extract

In heavy sauce pan, over low heat, melt chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and salt – stirring frequently. Remove from head, stir in vanilla then nuts. Spread evenly into wax paper lined 8 or 9 inch square pan. Chill 2 hours until firm. Turn fudge onto cutting board, peel off paper and cut into squares. Store left overs in fridge.

Crab Rangoon

This recipe is from Tastefully Simple. I made these for a party and they were gone! It is very simple to make. You will need a mini muffin pan. I bought mine from my Pampered Chef consultant, Maria. She is awesome if you ever need a Pampered Chef consultant. The picture is not shown with them topped with the Sweet Pepper Jalapeno Jam. It sounds weird but the people that tried with and without preferred with the jam on top. It gives it a completely different taste. I also added about a 1/3 of a pepper chopped into my recipe. I actually made these one day and then made the crap cakes the next for Tony. I just made a smaller batch of crab cakes for Tony since this recipe called for only 6 oz of crab.




Baked Crab Rangoon

1 packet Creamy Crab™ Cheese Ball Mix
8 oz. softened cream cheese
1 Tbsp. Merlot Sauce
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 (6 oz.) can white crab, drained

24 wonton wrappers
Olive oil spray
Sweet Pepper Jalapeno Jam

Directions
Blend together first 5 ingredients. Press wonton wrappers into a mini muffin tin to form a cup; fill each cup with about 2 teaspoons of filling. Spritz the edges of the wonton wrappers with olive oil spray. Bake at 375° for 12 minutes, or until filling is bubbly and edges of wontons are lightly browned. Top each cup with a dollop of Sweet Pepper Jalapeno Jam. Makes 24 servings.

Crab Cakes

I started making these for Tony about three or four year's ago. These will be the best crab cakes you ever have. They are expensive to make since the crab meat itself is about $13 a pound. However think of how much you would pay for these in a restaurant. This is Paula Dean's crab cake recipe and makes about 8 medium crab cakes or 12 smal ones. I like to mix it up a bit. The tartar sauce is my recipe.

Crab Cakes

1 pound crab meat
1/3 cup crushed Ritz crackers
3 green onions chopped
½ cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup Mayo (I use a bit more if it seems to dry)
1 Egg
1 ts Worcestershire sauce
1 ts dry mustard
½ lemon squeezed
¼ ts salt
Dash of cayenne pepper
Flour for dusting
½ cup peanut oil (peanut oil locks in flavor over other types of oil)

In large bowl, mix together all ingredients, except for flour and peanut oil. Shape into patties and dust with flour.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot, carefully place crab cakes, in batches, in pan and fry until browned, about 4 to 5 minutes. Carefully flip crab cakes and fry on other side until golden brown, about 4 minutes.

Tartar Sauce

½ cup light mayo
2 tb relish
½ ts salt
½ ts garlic
Dash of pepper

Mix ingredients and chill before serving.

Peppermint Bark

I love this peppermint bark! It is so easy and soooo good! One of my favorite Holiday treats. This is Paula Dean's Recipe.


1 cup crushed candy canes
2 pounds white chocolate (chips not blocks)
1/2 ts mint extract

Crush candy canes. Melt chocolate on low heat, stirring frequently. Combine cane chunks with chocolate and add mint extract. Pour mixture onto cookie sheet that is layered with waxed paper. Place in fridge for 45 min. Remove from cookie sheet and break into pieces.

To Kiss or Not to Kiss...

Tony has been sick lately and I have been doing everything to not get sick. I will not kiss him and really do not want to even hug him. Yesterday I was playing with Jack and kissed him on the nose.

Tony: “You will kiss Jack but you will not kiss your husband?”
Me: “I don’t want to get sick.”
Tony: “But Jack licks his own dick and ass!”

My Love of Animals

Yesterday I was cuddling with Oscar on the couch. He was stretched out on my stomach and pressed against the back of the couch. I looked at him with a huge smile on my face. I am glad to have my three dogs and cat and am able to provide them with a good home. It really saddens me the thought that 6-8 million dogs and cats are euthanized each year in the United States because people do not spay and neuter their pets. It is not fare animals have to die because of human negligence. It is not their fault they were born and just want to be loved.

The Crew

I long for the day spaying and neutering animals is mandatory until the pet population is under control. I understand allowing reputable breeds the ability to still breed their dogs but we also need harsher restrictions on who can do it to get rid of the puppy mills and eliminate the people that do it purely for profit. It really pisses me off to see card board signs outside of homes saying “Puppies for Sale”. Makes me want to stop at their house and scream at them to get their animal fixed.

Oscar

Jack and Sydney are shelter dogs. Milo was a stray and Oscar came from a breeder. After what I experienced volunteering at the animal shelter I am a bit embarrassed to have a dog from a breeder. I did search for a Shih Tzu in local shelters before getting Oscar. Otis, our Shih Tzu - Lasa mix that passed away five years ago was from a shelter. In fact Tony and I adopted him when he was 9 years old! Most dogs are doomed for euthanasia at that point. He lived another five years and brought so much joy to Tony and me. Volunteering in the animal shelter really changed my life. I saw a terrible side of animal cruelty. Knowing animals are abused is hard enough but actually seeing the starvation and the wounds is very hard to take in.

Otis

It also tears me up to see abused animals. Our laws on animal abuse are too relaxed. We need harsher punishments for those that abuse animals and kill them. There is no reason for it. I can tell Jack was abused before we adopted him. He cowers when he sees bats or anything that can be used as a weapon. He also is fearful of yelling and loud voices. It breaks my heart to know in the first few months of his life he was treated horribly and almost three years later is still affected by it. He is getting better but it takes time.

Jack and Sydney

Every now and then I go on pet finder and the local shelters just to look at dogs and cats. I wish I could save them all but I know it is not possible. I wish we had room for just one more dog or cat but our house is too small. Our life is a bit crazy sometimes with the four pets but I would not have it any other way. I loved these guys and would do everything for them.

Milo

Next time you are ready for a pet please go to your local shelter or rescue group. If you are stuck on purebreds they do exist in the shelters. Look around your house and consider adding another member to your family and save a life from the shelter. You don’t need a puppy. Adult dogs are very trainable and you get to skip the potty training phase! These dogs are not broken. They have open hearts and are ready to love you.

“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than himself.”
- Josh Billings

Thought for the Day

You know you’re grown up when your Glamour and Cosmopolitan magazines have been replaced by Good Housekeeping and Ladies’ Home Journal. Somewhere along the line reading about the top 10 decorating ideas and quick and easy meals is so much more appealing than reading about the top 100 sex positions.

I'm Exhausted!

I had my knee surgery on Wednesday. Everything went great. Today I am back at work but can hardly think straight. I went off the pain meds on Saturday because I could not sleep. Tylenol and aspirin seem to be doing just fine for me. The last few days have been a complete blur. I am hobbling around OK. I do not get my stitches out until the 21st.

Tony has been working a lot so he has not been around to help me much. I am making out OK on my own but when he is home he tells me I am a horrible patient. I say he is a bad servant.

I was excited to get on the scale today to discover I had not gained any weight. I was a bit worried since I am not exercising and have been eating like crap. Maybe I am eating like crap but not over doing it.

More Decorating Fun

Our dinning room. I love the holly around the chandelier.



Oscar all bundled up for winter.



I came home from work five years ago to find Frosty's nose extended. Oscar did this when he was a puppy. We found it too funny to fix and still put it out every year.

This is the Santa Oscar ate the beard off of five years ago as well.

Dad bought me this a few years back. We used to pick out the Christmas tree together. The truth is Mom sent me with Dad because even though he is a Steigerwaldt he still picked out the ugliest trees.

More Christmas Decoration Pictures

Our fireplace mantel


Fireplace decorations



Love my new glasses!

Festive Kitchen!

In the Christmas Spirit

Last weekend I finally got into the Christmas spirit. We had snow on Saturday. It started in the afternoon and went into the evening. We normally never get snow this early in the year. We did get our tree from the fire department. It is a beautiful tree but I think it is one they cut early. It is dropping needles very fast. I would love to put ribbon on it but with me not working at home any more to keep an eye on the dogs I have a feeling they would destroy it. It was snowing when we picked up our tree too! I finished all of my Christmas shopping last weekend. I had my surgery yesterday and can’t drive for probably the rest of the month.

Tony's return from the Toys for Tots ride

Our early snow fall

I found some beautiful table decorations at World Market. I bought charges for my table and really neat wine glasses. I had $10 off a $30 purchase and 25% off my total order. I already had the place mats and napkins so it did not cost much to update my Christmas decorations for the dining room. I also bought really cute snowman salt and pepper shakers from Hallmark for only 33 cents after my coupon! They were originally $12! I even bought Christmas cards and stamps. Now just need to send them out. We still do not have our outdoor Christmas decorations out. Tony will do that this weekend.

Table decorations.

My surgery did go well but I am having problems sleeping. The percocet they gave me keeps me up and wired. I think I only slept for five hours last night. I would have started making Christmas candy at 1 AM if my food processor would not wake up Tony. I just hope my sleeping schedule gets back on track before work on Monday.

Our tree

Thought for the Day

It is a sad day when the day comes you need acme cream and wrinkle cream. Wrinkles and zits...how attractive.

ARUBA!

Our vacation planning is coming together for next year. Just a little over a month away and Tony and I will be visiting his cousins in Arizona. We just made reservations for our 10 year anniversary in Aruba. I really wanted to go to Europe but Aruba is so much cheaper. Maybe next time. I love that Tony and I are able to travel so much and get to experience different parts of the world. Planning these trips in advance gives us something to look forward to and make all our hard work worth every bit.

Starting to feel like Christmas

The Christmas spirit may be just around the corner for me. Snow may be coming our way Saturday night. A little early for NC but that is OK. Maybe seeing some snow may help me. Today we woke up and it was only about 28 degrees out. Freezing cold. Highs in the 50's...yeah...it is winter here and I hate it. Bring on the sunshine.

Gifts started arriving in the mail yesterday. The bad thing is between Tony and I we have no idea whose is whose. It is almost tempting just to throw them under the tree still in their packages and then we just randomly pickup gifts Christmas morning. This year I am not going to go nuts with buying the dogs gifts. They have plenty of toys piled up around the house to last them a long time.

Bah-Humbug

This year I am just not in the Christmas spirit. Neither is Tony. It still does not feel like winter in NC since the leaves are not completely off our trees. We both are exhausted from all the work that was going on in our house the last month. While most people in our neighborhood have their Christmas decorations outside, Tony and I still have our fall decorations out.

The fire department by my house sells Christmas trees every year. They are beautiful trees from the NC mountains. Last year we did not buy from the firehouse. Tony wanted to buy cheap trees from the local grocery store. We bought two, one for upstairs and one downstairs. These trees were the ugliest things I ever saw. No shape to them and gaps everywhere. Seems like the local grocery store received all the reject trees some drunken redneck cut down in the back yard. This year we will buy from the firehouse regardless of what he says. Of course just yesterday he mentioned a nice tree his coworker bought at Walmart…I don’t think so. However with my bah-humbug attitude I am tempted to just go in my attic and grab one of my 4 foot outdoor lighted trees and just decorate that thing in my living room.

In one week I have my knee surgery which just adds to me not wanting to do anything for Christmas. Christmas cookies? Forget it. My ass is large enough and not being able to move around for a good month will just add to it.

At least most of my Christmas shopping is done but that does not come without irritation. I am trying to stick to a strict budget this year but that does not seem to happen. People ask for gifts over our budget and others are very difficult to buy for.

Let’s talk Christmas cards. Back in the day they were a great idea. Today…what a fricken waste of money. I do not mind receiving the Christmas letters from people since Tony and I live so far away but it goes over the line when the Christmas letter is in 7 pt font and I need a f’ing magnifying glass to read it. Can you believe the cost of Christmas cards now and stamps! Sending out 40 cards can cost you about $60. This year it is on my f--- it list. I may just send them to the people that send them to me as they come in and leave it at that.

Now to the ugly decorations people put out. Who the hell invented those ridiculous blow up decorations. Lets waste a ton of electricity on a fan that blows up a 6 foot tall snow man. That is real attractive. Why can’t people do simple and elegant? Sure a jumbo sized frosty is amusing to kids but do you need to put it in the front yard? Too bad I can’t get away with taking a BB gun to it.

Maybe I am just cranky because it seems Christmas starts earlier each year. The local mall by me puts up their Christmas decorations before Halloween. Can’t we just get through Thanksgiving before I see Santa? Well, lets hope I am in the spirit by this weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tony and I had a great Thanksgiving with our close friends. We are so lucky to have people we consider family in NC. Well Thanksgiving is our first start to the holiday eating season also called putting on the winter weight. Pounds gain...0...good job.

We did not do Black Friday. First time in a long time we did not get up early to go shopping. It was nice to relax this past weekend. I can't even remember the last time Tony and I had a four day weekend and just stayed home. We always travel somewhere. My Christmas shopping is almost done. Scored big at Kohl's and Macy's over the weekend.

Thought for the day....

Why do female mannequins have nipples? Even the males look like a Ken doll so why do the females have more detail?

Patio

I promised pictures of the patio a long time ago. Finally here they are.

The patio used to be 10x10 and now is 14x22.

Just need to add the covered roof now.

Can you believe there used to be a shed here?

The trees need to rebound since they back side was blocked by the shed.

This is really pretty in the summer when the flowers are blooming.

It's Finally Done

Our flooring is finally complete! We still have a of cleaning to do in the other rooms and a few more decorations but for the most part it is done!


I can't believe this is my fireplace. Tony did an amazing job.


The brown walls are starting to grow on me. I need to buy green pillows and get rid of the brown ones.


The dinning room chairs look better against the brown walls.



I love my bedroom rugs from Target. They are so soft. The headboard is from World Market. I might get rid of my Euro Pillows since they cover it.


I have a fireplace that goes under the picture. Still need to put that back in the room.

Tis the Season for Flannel

Yes it is only in the 60’s right now in North Carolina but after living here for over five years now 60 degree weather is cold to me. So much so that on a sunny day of 68 degrees I decided that was the day to get out my flannel PJ’s.

Flannel PJ’s must be a husband’s worst nightmare. There is nothing sexy about them and to make matters worse for Tony he says I look like my mother in him. Hmm…maybe they are the new excuse now for “having a headache”. Now when sex is out of the question I put on my flannel PJ’s and he gets a vision of my mom…total mood killer for him. I don’t have to make any excuses verbally because the PJ’s speak for themselves. I am sure Tony’s favorite flannel PJ’s I own are the pink and purple set with schnauzers all over them. Even I will admit it they make me look like a whacked out mental patient. But hey, they are comfortable and warm in the winter time.

I bought Tony some flannel PJ’s one year envisioning us cozied up on our flannels and watching movies on the couch with hot chocolate in our hands. I’ve never seen him in the shirt. I think there is something about matching tops and bottoms for sleeping in that men do not like. Unless they are completely metro sexual and the PJ’s are made by Ralph Lauren.

House is Starting to Come Together

The hardwood floors are complete in the living room, dinning room, and the main hallway. We just have left the bedroom and another hallway. I can't believe it is all coming together. I think my camera has some water spots in it from when I took it snorkeling. I may have to send it in for warranty work. The stabilizer also does not seem to be working.