The In-Between Pics – 30th B-Day.
As promised – the funny in-between pics from my birthday weekend. Some need more explanation than others. But I think it’s obvious a great time was had by all 
Anyone who knows my hubby, the official designated driver, knows this is fake. But still funny
Trivial Pursuit is really hard after a few bottles of wine, a full stomach of TCBY, and blended mudslides. I truly think it was the game and not all the alcohol that made us declare the winner after just two pie pieces. At least we provided entertainment for my step-daughter.
Kim making her grilled 5 cheese sandwiches. Fabulous!!
M was excited when my hubby finally agreed to a drink. Since he only had two he got extremely strong drinks to keep up with us.
We couldn’t find the 90’s version of Trivial Pursuit (because that one had to be much easier, right??) so we got the game “Would You Rather…?” I’d recommend it to anyone!
One of the challenages from the game
Hubby thinking hard before debating…
Kim found a bottle of wine called Bitch. It’s no surprise she’s been holding on to it for over a year for me. I think we were all surprised at how tasty it was.
Honestly, not sure what’s going on in this picture. I only remember telling hubby “Suck it in.” I know, I’m so mean.
I love this picture. There is a “normal” one, but this one makes me laugh every time I see it. You can tell I’ve had a super fun weekend and am very excited for my birthday dinner
Thanks to my wonderful friends who made my 30th birthday better than I could have ever asked for. I love you with all of my heart!!
30th Birthday – Before & After
Here is how last Friday started out:
We added to this collection with an additional 4 bottles of wine on Saturday.
And here is how the weekend ended on Tuesday (a very fun and extended weekend)
One lonely bottle in the background remains in tact. We’ll really all the hard alcohol is left too, but I just didn’t feel like pulling out for the sake of pictures. I’m still in recovery-mode so I’ll post the funny in-between pics later this weekend. Wow, I can’t believe tomorrow is Friday already! I feel some naps coming on
Blowing Off a Little Steam
I sometimes wonder why I bother putting effort into things when I get nothing in return. How can people so gladly accept things or recognition, but don’t have the consideration or manners to do something nice back when the time comes.
That being said, what ever happened to manners? Or putting in a little effort to acknowledge someone other than yourself? Is it really too much to ask to pick up the phone and make a 5 minute phone call? Or even write up quick email or text message? Apparently when it comes to many people I’m related to, it is too much to ask.
Giants Bag
No, it’s not a giant bag. It’s a bag inspired by my favorite baseball team, the SF Giants, and my upcoming trip to the Bay Area for a day at the ballpark with most of my very large family. There will 25 of us total and it should be a blast helping my grandpa celebrate his birthday.
Back to the bag. I’m doing the same mitered square felted tote pattern I’m hooked on and I’m using Lamb’s Pride worsted in Onyx for the black and Orange Creamsicle for the orange. The orange is a variegated mix of orange shades and did in fact bring on a craving for a 50/50 bar last night.
Here is a start:
I’d better get moving on it because I leave two weeks from tomorrow and these bags typically take me three or four weeks. Luckily I have some extra time off coming up which will end up being marathon knitting days. Better check out some TV shows on DVD from the library.
Fun Times
Kim and another wonderful friend are here helping me ring in the big 3-0 this weekend. Some fabulous wine has already been consumed and drunk Trivial Pursuit was played until we declared the winner who only earned two pie pieces. Why I’m up after only 5 hours of sleep without a hangover is beyond me. Maybe two Advil PM right before bed really are the remedy. Still doesn’t explain the minimal sleep though. That’s o.k. I’ll put up with a few days of bad sleep and start my new prescription of Ambien on Wednesday – with my liver getting a much needed break.
So, I think we’re going to hit the farmer’s market if the weather doesn’t act up again. People watching, coffee drinking, knitting in public and hopefully a little sushi for lunch. But it’s a laid back extended weekend so we’ll see if any of that actually happens. But I do know more wine is on the “To Do” list .
Where’s My Bendy Straw?
Today was one of those days. I could have easily come home, put a straw in a bottle of wine and drink until it’s gone or I pass out, whichever comes first.
However, I don’t feel like spending my Saturday hungover. So, I’m only having a glass. Well, I might start my second in a few minutes. Sweet, wonderful chardonnay – you make my bad days all better.
TGIF!
Sierra Socks
I finished another pair of socks. And just in time for summer. My timing is perfect
I made this pair for one of my uncles. Since I’ve knit something for everyone else in their family I thought it was time he deserved something too. Here I am trying them on for pictures and blogging:
Not the best picture since it was with my camera on my phone, but you can see how I accidently got the stipes to pretty much line up. Go me! Here’s a little better picture of them
I used On-Line Supersocke 100 and size 1 needles. It’s the basic sock pattern I got from Kim way back when she first taught me how to make socks. I was going to call these Mountain Socks because I was working on them last weekend while hubby and I were up in the mountains, celebrating our 3rd anniversary. The colors in this yarn reminded me of all the beauty around us. And then I found the label this morning and the actual color name is Sierra. Perfect for my aunt and uncle who one day hope to move to the Sierra foothills. Not only is the name perfect, but I thought the color completely matched my uncle and all the outdoorsy stuff he enjoys. And to top it off, I got this yarn at Stitches West last year while I was staying with them. This yarn was meant to be knit up into a pair of sock for Uncle Paul.
A side note on this yarn – I LOVE IT! Not only is it wonderful to knit with, but there is so much leftover. I’m not sure what I’ll do with the leftovers yet, but it will look great with my growing collection of leftover balls of sock yarn. I can’t wait to try different colors of this yarn.
Summer Spots
Our annual sign that warmer weather is here to stay:
The dogs get a hair cut. And every year Daisy has more black spots that come through. Ginger has a few more spots this year, but they are light brown and didn’t show up well in pictures. I love this shorter hair – cuts way down on the shedding around here.
Here are a couple other pictures I’ve snapped around the yard showing that Spring is finally here (although with our weather it feels like we jumped straight to summer):
This is the very persistent apricot tree that hubby eventually wants to pull out of our backyard. It seems the things we tried so desperately to kill last year are coming back with a vengeance this spring. I’m still waiting (hoping) for some raspberry vines to pop up, but nothing yet.
And I gave into a gimmick I saw on TV:
The Topsy Turvy. This picture was taken a few weeks ago, in bad lighting. There is a little tomato plant there that is not looking too good. We had some unexpected freeze days last week, but with the warmer weather my plant is looking o.k. Still not sure it will produce anything near what is shown on the commercials, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed.
At the same time I planted the tomato plant I planted some basil, thyme and rosemary in various pots around my house. They are growing like crazy. And are getting much use in my cooking. There is nothing like fresh herbs, especially when I only have to water them and put them in sun to keep them alive
Keep Away
It only took Ginger two years to figure out a way to annoy the hell out of Daisy, but also how to get that old lady to chase her:
Once Ginger realized she could fit both her favorite toy (the squeaky bone) and Daisy’s favorite toy (any ball) in her mouth at the same time AND that Daisy would chase her for either she’s been tormenting poor Daisy constantly.
Ginger will sit like this for minutes, which in her time must feel like hours, and stare Daisy down. Once Daisy lunges, Ginger’s off like a bat out of hell, doing laps around our small house. All we see are two blurs of white fur. It’s sometimes the only exercise Daisy gets in a day. And some days the only real entertainment we get.
Our poor carpet.
Homemade Chicken Potpies
There were two things that got me thinking about making homemade individual-sized chicken potpies. One, getting a set of ramekins for Christmas and two, the book Eat This, Not That.
One of my hubby’s favorite freezer staples is Marie Callendar’s frozen Pot Pies. I could have read the label and figured out how horribly high in fat and calories these are, but I chose not to. After we both saw the facts in black & white in the pages of Eat This, Not That we both agreed the frozen potpies were banned from our house. Read this book. It was a huge eye opener for both me and my hubby, but even better are the suggestions for substitutions they make (hence the Eat This part of the book) that are quite surprising.
In an effort to use more of my kitchen gadgets that tend to get forgotten when shoved to the back of a cabinet, I pulled out my still new set of ramekins and successfully made 4 wonderful potpies for dinner last night.
Ingredients:
1lb chicken breast
1 cup red potatoes, cubed
1/4 cup water
2 cans (10 3/4oz) reduced fat cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup Italian dressing (I used Kraft Tuscan House)
1 package (2 cups) frozen mixed vegetables
1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream
parmesean cheese
1 container of Pillsbury Grands flaky biscuits
salt, pepper and seasonings to taste (I used chopped, fresh thyme)
4-6 ramekin or individual-sized casserole dishes
To cook chicken: Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Season chicken liberally with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Bake for 15-20 mins. Allow to cool slightly. Cube chicken.
While chicken is cooking – place potatoes in a microwave safe bowl, add water. Cover and microwave 5-7 minutes, or until fork tender. Drain and set aside.
In a large saucepan add chicken, potatoes, soup, dressing and vegetables. Bring to a boil, then reduced heat to med-low, cover and simmer 3 mins. or until vegetables are heated through. Stir in sour cream, salt, pepper and any other seasonings to taste at this time, and cook until heated.
Fill each ramekin 3/4 of the way full with soup mixture. Sprinkle with parmesean cheese.
Stretch one biscuit over each dish. Press biscuit dough along edge of dish to seal. Cut 1 or 2 small holes in dough to vent.
Bake potpies in a 350 degree oven for 14-20 mins. or until biscuits are browned and baked through.
