Woman's Work

My first zucchini has grown today, and we ate the first cherry tomatoes on Sunday. Unfortunately, I realized that I had neglected to take a photo after it was dark and the sprinklers were on. Still, there's just something about putting work into the garden that is so satisfying.

Tonight we ate steaks marinated in that yummy marinade I posted a few weeks ago. It is great for cheap meat! I put together a salad from yesterday's leftovers and Branden pulled some herbs from the garden.
After dinner, I ran some errands, preparing for the cupcakes I plan to make later this week, and prepping for fall by buying a cute pair of flats.

When I got home, I made some wheat-free cheese crackers. I now like them better than three store bought variety. Not to mention they have no preservatives, and don't last four a year and a half..... I mean, can you really call something that lasts that long food?

Now I'm tired and just remembered that I forgot to put the yogurt in the fridge. I unloaded and loaded the dishwasher, but my kitchen's still a disaster. We have guests coming over tomorrow, so I need to find a time to at least hide the mess. And to think, today's my kitchen cleaning day. Why is it so hard to stick to a schedule?

I'm sure that part of it is that I bring work home with me almost every day. It's tough getting it all done before Branden's ready to take me home. Today before I left, I heard someone at work say that she's a better mom because she works. She went on to explain that her children know what a woman's capable of. I don't think you need to have a career to teach your kids that. I think you can do it by teaching them heard work, and feeding them, and by leading by example as you love them. But then again, maybe I never doubted that a woman can do anything because my mom taught me that, and she worked before me. Today she may not be the person I turn to for ironing advice, and while I know I took her for granted when I was young, she did teach me how to care for a family while working. And I'm thankful for that! I just hope I can figure out how to give my family everything want then to have.

Housewarming

This weekend one of my coworkers held a housewarming open house. I didn't think we were going to be able to make it, but when it turned out that we could, I only had a couple of hours to put together a gift. After combing Pinterest for ideas, I loved the cute mason jars with cleaning supplies and similar items. BUT this family has been in their new home for about a month already, and the last thing I want to do is give people a bunch of stuff they won't use. After brainstorming, I decided to etch a monogram onto a glass canister and fill it with something more fun than cleaning supplies (not to mention, the cost can really add up). 2 batches of cookies later and we were ready to go!

Coming in December ...

And you wonder why I've been quiet. :-)

Chores

What a boring title, right? Well after scoping pinterest for weeks, I think I finally have a chore chart for myself that I LOVE. I've planned it around the days that I am able to be home with enough time to clean, and I have just as many make-up days as I do regular days. And it's kept me incredibly motivated.

Meals for this Week

Day of the Week	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Main Course	Spaghetti Squash with Italian Sausage Marinara	Pulled Pork	Leftovers	Grilled Chicken	Steak & Steamed Shrimp	Leftovers	Stuffed Bell Peppers
Side	N/A	Cole Slaw	N/A	Grilled In Season Veggies	Salad	N/A	Mashed Cauliflower

Photos to come!

Mashed Cauliflower

In the low-carb world, potatoes have a second cousin: the cauliflower. And I LOVE this recipe, though it doesn't keep quite as long as potatoes might :-)

Ingredients:

1-2 heads Cauliflower

1 T Steak Rub (we find ours at Winco)

2 Tbs Butter

1/4 C Heavy Cream

Steps

1. Chop cauliflower into florets
2. Steam cauliflower florets in microwave or on stove until soft when stabbed with a fork
3. Place into a mixing bowl and add remaining ingredients
4. Mix on medium speed until all ingredients are evenly incorporated

Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Bell Peppers

This is a yummy low carb option, and we love it. I found it on Pinterest and it has become a staple in our repertoire. Of course, it always tastes better when my husband makes it. 

http://peaceloveandlowcarb.blogspot.com/2012/06/philly-cheesesteak-stuffed-peppers.html

Steamed Shrimp and Cocktail Sauce

Whenever I think of summer, I think of seafood. And as long as I don't think about peeling them, I love shrimp. The steamed shrimp recipe is a trusty recipe by Old Bay, and I couldn't get through the summer without it.

Old Bay Steamed Shrimp

From http://www.oldbay.com/Recipes/Shrimp/Appetizers/OLD-BAY-Steamed-Shrimp-with-Cocktail-Sauce

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup cider vinegar or beer1/2 cup water2 tablespoons OLD BAY® Seasoning1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, leaving tails on1 cup OLD BAY® Cocktail Sauce

DIRECTIONS

In a medium saucepan, mix vinegar, water and OLD BAY. Bring to boil on medium heat. Gently stir in shrimp, then cover.

Steam 2 to 3 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink. Drain well.

Serve immediately or refrigerate until hungry guests arrive. Best served with punchy cocktail sauce and lively conversation.

Homemade Cocktail Sauce

Ketchup

Horseradish (not prepared)

1. Mix ketchup with desired amount of Horseradish 

Steak Marinade

A few weeks ago I made this kebab recipe (with a slight oil variation):

http://www.food.com/recipe/sirloin-steak-kabobs-94818

It was so good, I'm planning on using the same marinade for steak this week. Yum!

Ingredients
1/4 C Wine Vinegar
1/2 C Olive Oil
1/4 C Ketchup
1 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Oregano
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
2 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 C Chopped Onion
2 Cloves Minced Garlic

1. Mix all ingredients in a gallon sized baggie
2. Insert steak and marinate overnight
3. Grill

Carolina BBQ (Pulled Pork)

One of the things I miss most from home is Eastern North Carolina Barbecue. There's nothing quite like it, and I'm always looking for the right sauce. Therefore, you can expect to find many renditions below. Last time I was in NC, I did find out form my favorite BBQ restaurant that they cook the meat with no sauce first, shred it, and then pour their delicious sauce over it. 

Sauce
Ingredients:
1 C White Vinegar
1 C Cider Vinegar
1 T Brown Sugar
2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
2 tsp Tobasco Sauce
1 tsp Salt
2 tsp Black Pepper

Combine all ingredients in a jar, shake, and store for 2 days - 2 months prior to using. I usually make a few batches and leave them in the fridge until I am ready to use them.

Pulled Pork

1. Place a pork shoulder in a crock-pot, or other slow cooker, with fat-side up 
2. Lightly Salt
3. Pour in 1/4 cup water
4. Cook for 6-8 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low
5. Remove pork from slow cooker, discard juices, fat, bone, etc. and shred
6. Mix with sauce and serve on a plate or as a sandwich on a bun

Spaghetti Squash with Italian Sausage Marinara

This is one of my favorite meals right now, and it's an easy for weeknight prep. Not very different from your traditional spaghetti with meat marinara, but it's a slightly lower carb alternative, and the Italian sausage lends a nice flavor to the marinara. I start out by getting my squash in the microwave, and while it's cooking I move on to the marinara.

Spaghetti Squash

1. Cut a spaghetti squash in half lengthwise
2. Scrape out all of the seeds
3. Place the squash cut side down in a dish big enough to hold the squash, but small enough to fit in the microwave
4. Fill the dish with about 1/2 inch of water
5. Microwave for 15 min each half (now is the time to start on the marinara)
6. Use a fork to scrape the meat out of the squash 

Italian Sausage Marinara

1. Brown a package of Italian Sausage in a medium pan
2. Pour in your favorite jar of marinara sauce (I tend to like sauces with garlic) and simmer until ready to use

A Trip Back Home

The second-to last week of June, Branden and I made a trip back to the east coast for a friend's wedding. We had just enough time to go sailing with my dad, visit Wilmington, and make it back to Raleigh for a few days with my mom and her parents.

New Bern is a pretty neat place. It doesn't feel like a beach town, but it is a small town, and the older I get, the more I realize that I love those. We ate great seafood, bought a toy for Finn, and ate breakfast at the Baker's Kitchen.

After New Bern, we headed south to Wilmington to visit Branden's cousin and to scope out the town. Unfortunately, I think both Branden and I were a bit disappointed because it wasn't a city that spoke to us. Oh well, we'll keep searching the country for the place we want to settle down in.

After our coastal excursions, we headed back to Raleigh to spend some quality time with my Mom and Grandparents. The following morning, my grandpa tried his hand at cooking breakfast for everyone. What a treat!

The wedding was wonderful, and the bride was absolutely beaming. It was neat getting to see some of my old friends from high school (and before... I've known the bride since preschool). After chatting with everyone, I can't wait to see them all again.

On the way home, a delayed flight actually allowed us to leave Detroit faster than initially planned. Unfortunately, that also meant that we left Detroit faster than our luggage. It meant that we had a bit of a hectic week, last week, but all in all, I'm glad we went.

On a side note, we were originally hoping to fall in love with Wilmington and make it our goal to move there some day. We were quite disappointed that we didn't love it when we visited, but it did reassure us of our love of the home (and town) we live in now.

House Hunting

"... or I guess you could call it larger apartment/townhome/house hunting. Were getting a little tired of only having one bedroom, but, at the same time, it would be sad to move out of our first apartment." That was from a few months ago, and I can say, looking back, we don't miss our old place at all.

We began the search in December, mainly so that I could familiarize myself with the market, and figure out what I wanted in a place. We fell in love with a three bedroom home and applied. At the time we were told that they hadn't received any applications. Unfortunately, we found out that they had received a few before ours, and we weren't even considered for the place, though we were pre-approved for any of the other properties they managed. When that fell-through we were more eager to jump on a place, and almost moved into a place to the north of Salt Lake; however, it never did feel quite right, and we let that one go as well.

We were about to give up (our apartment required us to give them 60 days notice prior to moving out), when we found a beautiful property in a smaller town near Salt Lake City. We've been doing work on it ever since, and it's come a long way, but this is what we started out with.

Front Elevation

Laundry

Dining Room

Kitchen (looking to the left)

Kitchen (looking to the right)

Master

As I mentioned, we've been doing a lot of work on it (removing waste, growing grass, painting walls, installing a dishwasher), and more photos will follow. One thing I learned from the apartment is that I will never be "done" when it comes to decorating a home, so I'll keep you up to date on the in-progress stats!

Productivity to the dog

Its 8:15, and I feel like I've already had quite the productive morning. I got up, and dressed myself and the dog for snow. Yes, he has a snow jacket and booties. Now normally, I'm no advocate for dressing pets up, but in this case, it means he stays warm enough to actually stay outside for more than 5 min. We ran around and played off leash, practicing the " come" and "heel" commands. I can say, there are very few things cutter than a little white dog running to you at full speed wearing a navy blue coat and little yellow shoes. Then we came back inside and I gave him a bath. Half because he needed one and half to melt the snow off of his little face. Then I cut his hair, brushed it, and dried it with my hair dryer. Now I feel quite accomplished, but I realize, its all gone to the dog.

I'm not going to dress him up for a photo, but if we go out in the snow again, I'll try to catch you one.