A Cupcake Solves All Woes

Today, I finally was able to make my trip to the thrift store. By the time I was ready to step out, snow was floating down from the sky. Yes, more snowflakes gently caressing the ground the very last week of March, This is totally normal. I quickly made it the the store without getting too damp from the snow and began my search for treasures. I found a few fun vintage dresses, one for my Mum and one for me. This pink dress is a hoot! It was made in Montreal, CA and it is 100% polyester! It is Barbie pink and it will be perfect to have on hand for a costume party.

Here is a close-up of the belt, a fabric belt. You can almost see the pattern in the fabric. After trying on this dress, it was very apparent that if I ever do wear it, I'll need to wear a modest slip underneath. Also, vintage dress sizes are a bit different from today's standard. All the same, I just couldn't walk out of the store without it. It cost about as much as a Mars Bar; so it was a modest investment.

After shopping for an hour, I was happy to get home and eat some lunch. I had just enough time to eat before leaving again to get groceries for the coming holiday, I have big baking plans in store. Once I finally returned home and was done with all errands for the day, I treated myself to a mug of hot coffee and a cupcake with sprinkles. It was a good day, but with sleep deprivation and raw nerves (caused by enduring several nights of nightmares) I was feeling dreadful. The cupcake made it all better. Now, I find myself midway through season 6 of Gossip Girl, whilst sipping a mug of hot cocoa and feeling cozy in fluffy pajammas. This is the perfect way to end a chilly day. Sadly, I didn't find anything that I could use for crafts, but that is okay I have plenty of time this week for fun. The holiday will keep me busy. Until next time~ Toodahloo!

The Very Hungry Blogger

Oh Fred, always at my side waiting for an adventure; or, at the very least, a cuddle. This week has been a weird week. It is one of those awkward transition weeks, where the weather finally begins to change. For a while, I have been feeling slightly sluggish and slightly ill. The matter has finally been resolved and I feel much better. First, I had a funky bug that had been spreading around. On top of that, I had a few unfortunate losses, which was emotionally taxing. I was constantly exhausted and hungry. I hadn't felt like that since I had a growth spurt in my teen years. I understood that I certainly was not growing. I decided to not freak out, but to retrace my steps.
When I was feeling under the weather, I changed my eating pattern. This is where the problem was, For nearly a year, I have consumed a protein rich breakfast every day. I really do require a lot of protein for my metabolism. This meant having an egg with almost every breakfast. When I wasn't feeling well, the thought of eating an egg was not appealing. So, I threw my cycle off and I was constantly hungry, because I wasn't getting enough nutrients. Since I wasn't getting enough nutrients, I had very little energy, which was why I was constantly exhausted and wanting to nap. Once I figured all of this out, I resumed my normal eating pattern and ever since I've felt so much better.
In other news, season finales of my favorite shows are airing this week. Last Friday, the "Season 4 finale" of Hart Of Dixie aired. I really liked that the writers ended the season the way they did, in case the show does NOT get renewed for another season (why the heck did they move the show to Friday, seriously?) at least all the loose ends were tied up. I will be bummed if that show isn't renewed, though. Tonight, the season finale of Heartland is on; I'll get to see what happened with Ty and Amy. Then there's  the last episode before a two week break of Once Upon A Time and then the season finale of  The Walking Dead. This is almost too much.
This past week, I have been taking it easy, trying to get my energy back for this coming week. I will be gearing up for the holiday and I'm determined to make it spectacular! This morning, I spent the latter part of the morning deep cleaning the house. I will continue to do little chores around the house throughout the week. I'll also be going to the thrift store tomorrow, woohoo! This means that this week I will finally be able to to some fun craft projects that I've been aching to start. I will also be making some homemade candy treats, so be on the lookout for that.
Lastly, I will leave you with a little Springtime inspiration. I assembled a playlist on Spotify which was inspired by my nephews and the joy that I feel when I get to see them. The playlist is titled "Happy Sappy" and it is filled with upbeat music; just the thing to lift one's spirits! It can be found here: https://play.spotify.com/user/1216509636/playlist/6pGU7iYpnlt8X9SgAThe9Y I hope this puts you in a great mood! Until next time~ Toodahloo!

A Spring In My Step

Today started on such a perfect foot; a foot ready to step towards crafty bliss. I wanted to work more on the quilt that I started way back in the Fall. I thought that I would watch a marathon of Pretty Little Liars all day, whilst working on the project. Tonight the Spring finale of the show will be on. Apparently, the identity of "A" will finally be revealed. I am very confident that this is another season finale that will not prove the identity of "A." It seems like every year that tasty carrot is dangled in front of us, only to be a parsnip.

My efforts to focus on the quilt were thwarted when other tasks got in the way. It was one of those "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie" sort of days, where one task materialized, which then produced another and another. I never did get to that quilt. Fortunately, there is always tomorrow.

The good news- look at my book cases! They are getting tidier, aren't they? The task of re-organizing my books has taken time, but it's nearly complete. It feels fantastic to have that done. To have my books, neatly organized and categorized is very satisfying.

While I'm on the subject of books...I've recently seen a trend where thirtysomethings are feeling nostalgic for the "Scary Stories To Tell In the Dark" series. According to an article on nerdist.com, a documentary on the series is in the works. I find this to be very exciting. As you can see, I am a fan of the books. I loved those books when I was a little girl. I remember reading the first book in the series, when I was in the 5th grade. I thought the chilling stories were so thrilling and the illustrations were unnerving. At that point in my life, I was already a fan of monsters. I loved the Fall, and Halloween was my favorite day of the year. I still love spooky tales. A few years ago, I tracked down all of the books in the series at Goodwill. I am so happy to have those, to read them whenever I wish to feel spooked. Way back when I was worlds away, with my nose to those pages, I had no idea that I was exposing myself to literature which would later be banned. In fact, a number of my childhood books that I have in my personal library were or are on the banned book list. I am so happy that I was able to enjoy those stories and illustrations. My parents certainly shielded my eyes from inappropriate movies when I was a child. When it came to books, I was able to choose what I read. I never picked things that were inappropriate for my age, but even the most unexpected books were on the naughty list.
As an adult, I look back at the books that I enjoyed reading and smile. I read because I wanted to, not because there was the promise of a free personal pan pizza. When I was little, the nearest Pizza Hut was 30 miles away. The reward for reading a book, was the opportunity to drift away to another world. I don't know how many times I spent at "Green Gables," or played alongside "Ramona Quimby."
Now, with my books neatly sorted, it will be so much easier to travel through space and time. With that major task completed, I can focus my energy on more Spring cleaning chores and then I'll be able to create even more. Tomorrow, my project of the day will be the quilt. It would be nice to finally get back on that project and finish it. The weather is warmer and it is getting easier to get more inspiration for projects. I'll be certain to post about the quilt when I complete it.
Until nex time~ Toodahloo!

Seeing Green

Yesterday, we celebrated St. Patrick's Day. Even though we are not of Irish ancestry, we love to celebrate the holiday. Traditionally, I bake green velvet cake. However, this year, I decided to try something different. I did miss having green baked goods. I decided to begin the celebrating early, and made fluffy green pancakes. They look like something the Hulk would create, but they are delicious. I always use the recipe from the trusty Betty Crocker Cookbook. It was a fun way to start the day and it put a smile on my face.

In the afternoon, I made Irish soda bread, whilst watching the show Moone Boy on hulu.com. Growing up, my mother never made soda bread. The first time I ever had soda bread was when I was in college. I was at a cast party hosted my the director who also happened to be my adviser. She cooked a delicious dinner for the cast that included scrumptious soup and soda bread. I was hooked from that point. Every time I bake soda bread, I think of that night, it was a great time.

I use Craisins in my soda bread rather than currants or raisins. I also soak my Craisins in Red Rose tea for at least 30 minutes before draining them and adding them to the dough. I found the recipe way back in 2002 on epicurious.com. However, the internet is full of thousands of recipes for soda bread, I'm sure you can find one easily.

I ran out of time to make a dessert, so I waited until today. I wanted to make a dessert using only ingredients that I had already on hand. This morning, I decided to have fun and make up my own recipe. I call my creation- "Last Minute Key Lime Pie."

Last Minute Key Lime Pie

Ingredients:
1 (2.75 oz.) pkg. lime gelatin mix
1 (3 oz.) pkg. vanilla pudding mix
1 1/2 c. water
1 can sweetened condensed milk
4 oz. cream cheese (softened)
2 tbsp. lime juice
1/2 c. whipped topping
graham crack crust

Directions:
1) Prepare a graham cracker crust for a 10 in. deep dish pan according to directions on the back of the graham cracker box.
2) While the crust is in the oven, blend the gelatin mix and the pudding mix in a medium saucepan. On medium heat, add 1/2 cup of water and mix until the mixture is fully combined, then add the remaining water.
3) Remove crust from oven, and set aside to cool.
4) Continue to stir the gelatin and pudding mixture and bring to a full boil. Once it comes to a boil, let it cook for one minute and continue to stir, then remove from heat.
5) In a large mixing bowl, add the sweetened condensed milk and beat with an electric hand beater for 2 minutes. Add the lime juice and beat another minute.
6) Add the cream cheese to the milk mixture and beat on low speed until smooth. Then, switch the beater to high speed and beat for three minutes.
7) Slowly add the lime gelatin/pudding mixture to the milk mixture a little bit at a time. You don't want to pour it all in at once, because it will still be quite warm and it will make your mixture freak out on you. Beat on the lowest setting, with each addition until blended.
8) Once the all of the gelatin mixture is added, gently fold in the whipped topping and fold until smooth.
9) Pour mixture into graham cracker crust and chill until set.

Now, I know that technically this isn't Key Lime pie, as it doesn't use key lime. It is a sort of mock key lime pie. This took, roughly 30 minutes to through together. If you need to make a dessert quickly, this is great. This is also great to make if you are feeling a bit lazy and don't want to jump through a lot of hoops to get a tasty dessert. Sometimes, you just want a great dessert and you don't feel like you need to impress anyone. To be honest, I'm a bit impressed with myself. I don't often create my own recipes. I think my sister will dig this, because her little boy absolutely LOVES Key Lime Pie and this takes little effort and is practically fool proof. The trickiest part for me was folding in the whipped topping. Full disclosure: I didn't use vanilla pudding, I actually used vanilla tapioca pudding. This happened because I saw what looked like a box of vanilla pudding and I didn't see the word "Tapioca" that was in small lettering. I was initially a bit vexed, but I quickly got over it, and it turned out perfectly fine. These things happen and you just have to roll with it.

So, there you have it. A wonderful emerald green day was had. Tonight I will eat the delicious pie for dessert after I eat hash that will be made with the left overs from last night's boil dinner. I intend to be more creative this week and I can't wait to share it all with you. Until next time~ Toodahloo!

What's Happening

It is another lazy and snowy Sunday afternoon in New England. When will this snow season end? Our first serious snowstorm arrived in November, on the eve of Thanksgiving. Now, we are days away from St. Patrick's Day and the storms keep coming. This week has not been a productive week at all. This is partly due to the fact that I am not feeling very inspired to bake nor craft. Although I am really itching to do the thrift store for inspiration. Another reason is because, I am not feeling very well. Right now, I am snacking on a dish of pretzels dipped in Reese's Chocolate spread. Pretzels and salty chips seem to help, as does tea. I have been taking it easy and resting, not even exercising much, which really drives me batty. This funk all began back in October. It was the Fall premiere of The Walking Dead, the other house inhabitants decided to have a bit of a party and order pizza. I opted out. First of all, the show is on at 9 pm and I don't eat at that time of night, but also I would never be able to watch something grotty like that whilst eating pizza- it's far too unappetizing. So, instead, I had a mug of chicken noodle soup at a more reasonable hour. Twenty four hours later, I had a serious headache, fever and nausea. I was very sick for the entire day and into the next day. It wasn't the soup that made me sick, it was the improperly washed mug in which I made to soup that caused the illness. After that incident, I was very lactose intolerant.
I have had a bit of a rough patch with food, lately. I do have some food allergies that I've known about for years. However, after doing further research into lactose intolerance and milk allergies and comparing symptoms; it is clear to me that milk has been an issue since childhood. When I was in my 20's, I was a vegan and I felt the best I'd ever felt, even though my body was breaking down due to another (unrelated) illness. So many people, strangers even, seemed to take such an issue with that. My reasoning had nothing to do with ethics and everything to do with health. However, when you explain to someone that you're a vegan, they automatically assume that you're a crack-pot. So, I'm not a vegan anymore (I NEED eggs). Now I am needing to eat more pickles to balance out the bacteria in my gut, since I can't do that with yogurt. I am also reducing my caffeine intake, which means less coffee for me. I think that I'll be on the mend, soon.

In other news... I made homemade salsa the other day. I haven't made salsa in years. This was amazing, it tasted just like the salsa that I get at the Mexican restaurant. The key to great flavor is cilantro. Many people don't like cilantro, but I LOVE it. It has such a refreshing taste to it, I always add it to my guacamole, and it makes fresh salsa taste incredible!

I also made a handy measuring cup. I recycled an empty glass salad dressing bottle, cleaned and sterilized. I used a paint marker that can be used on glass to mark the measurements. On one side, I have 1/4 measurements marked in red paint. On the opposite side, I have 1/3 measurements marked in blue paint. I got the measurements, by pouring pre-measured water into the bottle and marking the water level. It was very easy to do and it will be good to have an extra liquid measuring cup handy. I like the look of the bottle, too.

All the pretzels are gone and I am left with a glob of peanut butter/chocolate spread and it really looks completely unappealing. The snack did give me a bit more energy, which is very much needed. I hope that this week, my stomach will get better and I won't be so exhausted, it would be nice to get back to creating. At least my work zone is clutter-free and it is a nice working area, once again. St. Patrick's Day is approaching and this always involves tasty food, so there will be a post soon. I think that tomorrow, I will sit down and plan the rest of the month's projects. That way, I'll be certain to be as creative as I can muster. Until next time~ Toodahloo!

Repairing A Tattered Quilt

Last week, I was anticipating the arrival of my sisters, who I though would be lodging at my house for the night. I grabbed fresh sheets and then found a quilt that my nephews borrowed over the holidays. When I was shoving the quilt into my washing machine to be clean and fresh, I discovered a massive hole in the quilt. Nobody told me that this had happened. I thought I would have to repair it that night. However, my sisters stayed at a nearby hotel; so I was off the hook, for a while. I wasn't upset about the hole (it isn't a hand-made quilt), I was dumbfounded. I have no idea how this massive hole happened. Nothing was frayed, it almost looks like it had been chewed, but we don't have a mouse problem in my house, still strange. So, over the weekend, I grabbed the quilt, a needle and thread, some batting and my quilting loop and began repairing the hole. I had to put patches on both sides of the quilt, as the hole went all the way through the quilt (again, strange). I layered some batting between the layers to keep the quilt warm. Four "Gossip Girl's" and two slices of sausage and green pepper pizza later, the quilt is as good as new, if not better than new.

Yesterday, I baked Boston Cream cupcakes. I used a mix for the cake, but I made the vanilla custard and the chocolate icing from scratch. I just really needed some kind of baked good. I also really needed some chocolate. The more comforting the food, the better these days. I have been so tired lately. Not only am I tired, but I am also feeling sluggish. I really hope that Spring arrives soon. I need the warm sun and the fresh air. I have to keep myself busy so that I don't fall asleep during the day. Otherwise, I'll not sleep at night. Lately, my sleep has been crazy and my dreams have been most bizarre. Last night, for instance, I had a dream in which I was living back in Cape Cod, working at a very posh coffee shop. However, the coffee shop was Dunkin' Donuts, but a super high end DD. The interior looked like a cross between a chic nightclub and the interior design of Abercrombie & Fitch. That is not the strange part. What was odd about this dream, was that, I was the manager of the establishment. I was wearing jeans and a black t-shirt. However, all of the other employees were men in drag. I was surrounded by drag queens. So strange. I've been to many coffee shops on The Cape, none of them looked like the one in my dream. I've also seen my share of drag queens on The Cape, but I don't recall ever seeing them inside a cafe. Perhaps, it is my dream to live in a small town surrounded by sassy drag queens. Who knows?

In other news, Bingo, the elusive house cat, has come out of hiding! Spotting her outside of my lair is like catching a glimpse of a Sasquatch. Now, she's even spending time in the sunny living room, curled up in an armchair. As soon as any company arrives though, she'll flee straight to my bedroom. She should have been named "Dickinson." Oh well, I do hope to get my energy up soon. I relax by watching shows on hulu.com and Netflix. I really hope to be back on the craft kick. I've been itching to go to the thrift store so that I can begin some re-fashion projects, in time for the warm weather. That would be a lot of fun. Hopefully, I ll be energized and pepped up enough to be active and have more to write about. As soon as that happens, I'll share it with you. Until then~ Toodahloo!

Playing Catch Up

I have taken a bit of time off from blogging for many reasons this week. The winter is slowly coming to an end and it doesn't seem to be giving up without a fight. The snowstorms keep coming and it has been quite cold. Today was a bright and sunny day. It was in the high 30's, which felt warm in comparison to previous weeks, and the snow even melted a tiny bit.
Last week, I worked a little at reorganizing my book shelves. This meant selecting a small pile of books that I know I'll never read (I got them from a friend who was clearing out her collection) to be donated. It also meant packing away some of my cookbooks. I have five boxes of cookbooks packed away and I still have a handful of cookbooks left on the shelf. I can't imagine how many boxes it will take to pack up all of my books; that is an unnerving thought. The project took way longer to complete than I'd anticipated. After all of that work, I was exhausted; so I took a few days off from the project. I am trying to get my space clean and organized in time for Spring. This way, I will have a safe and relaxing place to go to while I go bananas cleaning the rest of the house for Spring cleaning. It's not entirely perfect, but it's getting there.
While I was cleaning out my closet, I recovered my yoga mat. I used to do yoga every day when I was in my 20's. Then, it was physically impossible for me to continue the practice, so I stopped. Lately, I've decided to resume the exercise. I really need it to be a part of my life again. I find that it is beneficial for my physical strength and the deep breathing is fantastic for keeping me calm. Yesterday I wasn't feeling well. I had this strange sensation in my head and I woke with an unusual kind of headache. I wake up with headaches often, but this was very different. The pain didn't go away and I found that by the afternoon, I was very spacey and having trouble with breathing. I panicked a bit, then I realized what was happening. I have been under a bit of stress lately and I have been experiencing emotions that I was not addressing. My body was telling me that the stress of everything was harming me. I used some deep breathing, focusing on my breath. I calmed myself down and decided that I really needed to acknowledge what I was feeling and I need to get back to doing the things that I enjoy. The pain  and pressure in my head went away after I calmed myself down.  Now that Spring is nearly here, it will be easier for me to return to my crafts and to also try to get back to painting again. More than anything, I need to take care of myself. Needless to say, I've been cleaning, baking and taking steps to be more productive. There will be more crafting and sewing soon. So, that is what I've been up to lately. Although life hasn't been tremendously exciting, it has been eventful and I am looking forward to seeing some positive changes coming my way. I'm even looking forward to seeing dandelions! Until next time~ Toodahloo!