Crafting world

Here's the craft recap:
Painted canvas (Ruth 1:16), my take on a Pinterest inspiration:

I'm somewhat scared of hanging up pictures and what-nots around the house since we're renters. We have decided that what we have up now is more than likely it. But I want more stuff on the wall. For the longest time, I had planned this shelf made out of a couple of 2 by 4. I borrowed a saw from my co-worker, measured and measured, and Tom got to work. I finished the shelf by adding four L brackets.

The shelf went behind the smaller sofa in the living room. The gap is because of the baseboards, but it doesn't bother us. We also didn't stain or treat the wood since it is hidden and not a piece that we hope to keep for years and years (also I was lazy).

And finally our Packers stocks are in full display. I still think it needs something tall to bring the eyes up but I don't want it to look too cluttered, so who knows what I'll find. I added mini lights for mood or low lighting. And Bucky is hanging in his Christmas tree with our two Alaska ornaments - we are ready for Christmas but we are waiting for the Friday after Thanksgiving, which is when we traditionally put up the Christmas tree.

Weekend recap

This past weekend we were able to get away: a great 10 mile hike, beautiful Fall colors, and low temperatures. We have been waiting for good hiking conditions and this weekend was it. It was about 55 degrees when we hiked in. I had to wear a top base layer and my hat to keep my ears warm. We were amazed that our hilly hike took us about 2.5 hours with barely any breaks. We usually take about 3-4 breaks, taking our packs off, but not this weekend. So either the hike was easier or somehow we increased our endurance. We found a good camping site and started a fire. It was wonderful to warm up by it since it was in the mid 30s at night.

The hike out was a different story. It was warmer (mid 60s). We didn't stop but were considerably slower. The last 30 minutes were exhausting - we were so glad when we saw the last creek (about 15 mins from the trailhead) and the bridge to the car.

Other highlights: We saw deer tracks and saw what looked like rooting from a pig. So Tom did a quick recap on how to react to a wild pig. I also had my first roasted marshmallow. Not a fan. There will not be s'mores at the wedding. We also had chicken teriyaki with rice from Mountain High (previously cooked, dried camping food) for the first time. It was super yummy! On Sunday morning, I got up earlier than Tom (as usual). I went to get water, boiled it, made tea and another dried camping meal (beef stew, not all that good), and started the fire. I am feeling more comfortable in the wild, especially since I also set up the tent this time. I'm still not as good as Tom at gathering wood, telling time/how much daylight is left, and differentiating trails. 

We also met a black lab at the trailhead - her owners weren't around but she still was very playful and wanted to play fetch. We saw another family going on a hike at the trailhead and they took her with them, hoping to find her family on the trail.

It surprising how fast time flies. This past weekend, one year ago, Tom proposed.

Here is the link to the Facebook pictures:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10101736476040125.3114817.23413201&type=1&l=6134cc1cd2

Oh November!

For November, I'm
Excited:  about Divali (November 13), upcoming trips, and birthday
Worried: The one lecture I'm teaching, Green card interview
Watching: football, Revenge, Scandal, NCIS, Bones, Big Bang Theory
Reading: Siddhartha
Listening to: nothing in particular
Creating:  scrapbook
Cooking: stews? crockpot meals?
Loving: cool weather
Thinking: rather, being thankful and counting our blessings.
Looking forward to: Annual beach trip, ACME oyster house, Thanksgiving and Zak's return, and maybe an Ikea visit while we're in Atlanta for Green card stuff

Happy Halloween!

This is the first year that we haven't carved pumpkins, so instead here is the Evil Halloween Spirit of Sipsey:

He looks like he has a bloody mouth, and roasting the marshmallows with his eyes :)

Tasty Tuesday

I apologize for the absence of posts - I just haven't felt like blogging for a while, especially since I switched to mostly the iPad and my laptop is usually connected to the TV to stream shows and football games.
 
Pizza night - we tried the two-pound pizza dough recipe for our bread maker since we wanted to make deep dish pizza. We pre-baked the dough, and Tom didn't like the way the round one looked, so I turned it into cheesy garlic bread. The pizza has pepperoni, mushrooms, and onions. 

Then, you know what they say about not going shopping when you're hungry? Well I didn't listen and ended with these pork florentine at Publix. Just put in the oven and 40 minutes later, dinner was ready. We had grilled asparagus and mashed potatoes as sides. It was super yummy!

Last night, I was craving Indian food. I made Mauritian chicken curry (except that I didn't use peas since I didn't have any). I served this with cardamon and cinnamon rice and lettuce. I made extra rice because I wanted to make rice pudding (or kheer, rice cooked in milk) but the milk in the fridge was expired. Maybe we'll have fried rice at some point this week.

We also had baked lemon fish and shrimp pasta at some point but I didn't take any pictures.
And finally, the last of our pepper pickles. Yes, I was lazy and didn't peel the labels off these jars before using them. They had been previously washed. 
I saved a few peppers since Tom had been talking about Jalapeno vodka.


 

Wordless Wednesday

Tasty Tuesday

For some reason, we have been using our slow cooker more frequently than usual, as in three times in two weeks.
The first time, Tom made a shredded BBQ dish, served on buns. I forgot to take pictures. We had enough to make leftover wraps.
The second time, Wednesday, I stayed at home because of a migraine and threw some lentils in. I made it with most of the regular ingredients for a Mauritian lentil soup: carrots, chopped onions, thyme. I didn't have what we call curry leaf (it's almost like a bay leaf) or parsley. I usually make this in the pressure cooker but that day I decided to put it in the slow cooker and 5 hours later, Mauritian comfort food. And by that time, I could eat.

 

The third time, Saturday, I made garlic honey chicken, with broccoli and other stir fry veggies. While this was cooking, I ran my errands and finished a few crafts (more on this later).

On top of Crock Pot cooking, I've been feeling pretty inspired. Maybe my gift subscription to Everyday Food (thanks Laura!) is to blame.

I made Italian turkey meatballs, with and without cheese. Baked them, let them cool, and froze them for a quick meal later, while the chicken dish was baking.

Lemon rosemary baked chicken, roasted acorn squash with brown sugar, baked potatoes, tomatoes (from the garden) and mushrooms.
We had leftover buns from Tom's BBQ dish, so I made turkey burgers.

 Last night, we had shrimp poboys, with cocktail sauce and spicy mustard.









We also had more peppers, which meant pickling time. 

Tonight's supper: Spaghetti with turkey meatballs in marinara sauce, with maybe some cheesy garlic bread. I cooked shredded carrots and onions then added some reserved pasta water, and stirred in jarred pasta sauce. Then I added the frozen turkey meatballs and simmered while I wrote this blog post :)

I think one thing that I found out and really like, is making fresh breadcrumbs. I put a few slices of our regular honey wheat bread in the mini food processor and added it to the turkey meatballs. I did the same for the burgers. For the shrimp, I lightly toasted the bread before processing.
I expect more slow cooker meals coming soon :)

Wordless Wednesday

Tasty Tuesday

This past Saturday, Tom and I went for a 3.5 mile long hike at Oak Mountain. It felt good to be outdoors again. We decided to go all out and have a date night in.
We picked yummy cheeses with a crisp white wine (Rhine wine) and white Zinfandel. 

From left to right, goat cheese, Morel mushroom and leek Monterey Jack cheese, and extra sharp cheddar cheese.
Tom made perfectly cooked steaks while I made mashed potatoes, garlic mushrooms, and garlic sourdough grilled bread. We also picked Otter Paws ice cream (with caramel and chocolate covered pecans).

On Sunday, I finally found pectin and used a coupon to buy mason jars. The results: pepper jelly. I wasn't sure whether to strain or not, so I went without. This is very good - sweet and spicy. Would go well as a topping for cream cheese dip or with a creamy cheese on a cracker.

Used all the peppers in the back bowl, one large green pepper and a few more peppers from the garden. Final result:

These are cooked and heat processed and should be good unopened for one year. Maybe Christmas gifts? With a cute red ribbon?

Finally, last night I turned leftover mashed potatoes into creamy potato cheese soup (with mushrooms and bacon). Unfortunately or fortunately? my $10 seven-year old Walmart immersion blender died on me. Tom was powerless against my sad face. I have a feeling that a new immersion blender might magically appear on the wedding registry or the Christmas wishlist.

I added pickled jalapenos to mine, Tom added green onion to both

Oh October!

For October, I'm
Excited:  that temperatures are finally coming down and meeting Morrison (Susie Beth's new baby boy)
Watching: football, Revenge, Scandal, NCIS, Bones, Big Bang Theory
Reading: Siddhartha
Listening to: nothing in particular
Creating:  wedding invitations
Cooking: soups
Loving: the garden 
Thinking: about grandmothers and hoping for their good health
Looking forward to: Fall scarves and layers!