Wednesday, April 29, 2020

But I sure want it to be in my closet these days!

I am gravitating toward black and white tops right now.

Disclaimer: Remember that your white might not last as many seasons as your black. And, black can be worn more of the year, in my opinion.

Here we go…

I did an Old Navy order the first week of Quarantine. I got this top for around $16 with the promotion that was going on at the time. The online prices seem so much better, by the way, which works out great for us since we cannot go inside anyway.

It is a 3/4 lightweight top with boho details and ties with tassels. I leave them untied. This has been my number one top for virtual work meetings and virtual classes I am teaching. I think it runs true to size or a bit large. I wanted it to be a bit oversized. This works now and it will work in the fall. I have lots of patterned pants and skirts and I love black tops with interesting details.

Now let us talk about white. This was another Old Navy $16 top from my same order. This will require a cami underneath but I thought it had a Madewell or J.Crew vibe. White tops like this only feel right to me from about April through August. After Labor Day, they just seem too summery in a locale that has four distinct seasons like we have. This will look great with bright colored statement earrings.

Now this next top is knit and so, so soft. I ordered this – just this one item – from Loft at the beginning of Quarantine. It was under $20. This is my second most worn top for my virtual life. This is a bit oversized and you do not have to unbutton it to take it off or to put it on. Again, I think this will work with all of my printed skirts and pants and also with denim shorts, olive shorts, white shorts, and so much more this summer.

Back to the same Old Navy order as the black and white tops at the beginning of the post, this is very similar to the Loft knit button down, but in a different material. It is a bit of a dressier fabric. It was also around $16.

This next white top is from Costco last year. I was thrilled to find it and this is perfect for our spring weather. It is starting to look a bit worn in the armpit area. Remember that white tops may not last as many seasons. I am o.k. with that. I kind of wish I had bought a second one of these last year – at only $14 I think that would have been smart. This is by Gloria Vanderbilt. I will probably only wear this through May and then it will be too hot.

And, this is the Amazon $16 top from my Friday Favorites post. I wore it on Monday even though it was a bit cool for these sleeves.

This is my Target Knox Rose top that I bought way back in February. The collar comes up a bit higher than I would like but it is such a cute top. You will never believe this – the Target top is the most expensive of this post coming in at $29. Knox Rose seems to be one of the pricier brands at Target.

So, you can see why I want everything to be black and white right now, true? I think I am set!

I started making more of an effort to look put together this week, you guys. It really helped me to feel better throughout the whole day.

Where do you stand on black and white tops? Are you gravitating to these neutral basics or do you need color right now?

Amy

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Today we are going to talk about dishes and this might be the most boring post I have ever written, but I seriously am interested in how other people take care of the mundane parts of life. Give me a list of tips and I am a happy girl! My sister Kate told me never to say a post will be boring. Sorry, Kate – this time it really might be!

So, a couple of things. I do not really like paper plates. I despise eating off of them and do not even get me started on plastic cutlery or styrofoam. I am not like this because I am fancy; I think it is just a texture thing. One of my 2020 goals was to start using cloth napkins, for the environment and again because it is just a nicer texture. We are doing better with the bright fun pack of cloth napkins I bought in January from Amazon, but still use paper towels as napkins more often than we should. We do not buy paper napkins, either, but have the select-a-size paper towels from Costco. Is that weird? I only buy paper napkins for parties, which I am definitely not having right now!

So, we go through a lot of dishes in a 24 hour period, not to mention that I am doing more cooking and baking. Everyone I talk to is saying the same! We are all complaining about all the dishes.

Here is my streaky dishwasher. I wish I had a second one right now!

So, the key is an empty dishwasher when you need it empty. Right? The worst part is unloading it. I used to dread it so much but then I decided to time how long it took. You guys, I was stunned. It took me under 5 minutes. Why did I dread this so much? One reason is overstuffed cabinets. When I decluttered and everything had its space, this task became better.

Another thing that helps is to turn on a show, music, or podcast as you do these tasks. I have a really old little tv in the corner of my countertop and it makes me so happy. I like to watch cooking shows while I cook or clean. I sometimes watch the news. It really makes the chore not so bad.

So, here is our routine. I run the dishwasher around 5 p.m. while I am cooking dinner. I did this pre-pandemic, too. At the end of dinner, the boys have to unload it. We then put all of the dinner dishes in the empty dishwasher – they do this, too, but I wash the big things that we wash by hand. Then, the next morning, the dishwasher still has plenty of room for breakfast and lunch stuff and then I start it again at 5 p.m. the next day. Throughout the day, I sometimes leave stuff in the sink to deal with at 5 p.m. It does not bother me to have a few things in the sink to avoid doing dishes all.day.long. I also let things soak, which I know my husband hates but it makes things easier to clean.

So, this is my system. I only think about dishes one time a day really.
What is your system? Are you dealing with way more dishes than normal?

Let’s dish in the comments! Ha!

Amy

Monday, April 27, 2020

How was your weekend? Ours was wet! I am linking up today with Heather, Tanya, and many more so go right here.

Let us start with Friday. I worked for a few hours in the morning and then Ernie and I did our lunch time walk.

I made homemade salsa for the first time from canned diced tomatoes. I had red onion, cilantro, and everything needed. It was pretty good but I might like fresh tomatoes better.

I worked some more and then at 3 my youngest sister and I had a virtual cocktail. I took my slush from last weekend out of the freezer and added Fresca. It was too spicy last weekend and still too spicy this weekend but at least I didn’t let it go to waste! Friday was beautiful.

Friday night I cooked and after dinner Tom and I sat on the patio. It feels like an extra room and when you are home all the time an extra room is so nice.

We have had this propane fire contraption for several years and Tom got it out. It needs a cleaning badly but it was nice.

Saturday I made a layer dip.

And an iced coffee.

And, then the rain came and it rained almost all day Saturday and Sunday until late afternoon.

But, as you can see we still sat outside when it wasn’t a downpour. I love rain, actually. I cannot get through this book, by the way. The cover held so much promise. It is dragging. I am going to try to see it through, but it’s taking me forever. It is supposed to a light chick lit book and nothing is happening!

Then, we got take out for dinner from Roosters. It is like a BW3s with chicken and wings and bar food. It was o.k. Sometimes that type of food isn’t as good when it has to travel home, you know? They have a really good salad that Tom and I split along with some chicken. Saturday night I watched Legally Blonde for a bit. Then, I started a new show I will tell you about it a minute…

I slept in until 7 Sunday and took my coffee outside with a candle. It was pretty cold in the morning.

Then, I had a big outing. I decided to go to Target at 8:15. I wore a scarf and gloves. I got magazines and a new book and food items. There were only the workers who were all wearing masks and maybe 8 people shopping? I couldn’t believe it and I felt so happy to be in a Target. I don’t have a Kroger pick up scheduled for this week and we should be fine after that trip. I really wanted to go to Trader Joe’s but I drove by and they had a line of 20 people outside.

I made another iced coffee and put on my 15 year old Uggs because it was cold!

Saturday night I started Belgravia. I watched one and a half episodes on my cable on demand. Sunday afternoon I finished the second episode and then there were no more! Come to find out, the show just started April 12 and it airs on Epix channel on Sunday nights? So, I hope I have another episode pop up on on demand tomorrow because we don’t get that channel. Has anyone heard of it or watched it? It is by the creator of Downton Abbey.

Jack and I got do do something fun Sunday afternoon. His friend’s mom asked several of her son’s friends to come to the yard at a certain time – like 2:00, 2:30, etc. and wish the him happy birthday. I got a gift bag and movie candy at Target and Jack decorated the bag. You can’t see it well, but this is Jack walking up to the porch where a chair had been placed because of the rain. Jack stayed until the next friend’s shift. I could tell it really energized Jack and made him feel good that he did something nice.

While Jack was visiting, I walked the street and took pictures of the beautiful houses.

and the flowers.

This is in the Highlands area of Louisville.

When I got home, it was time to pay the piper and do the dreaded Sunday school work. I was better last week about getting some plans ready by the end of the day Friday, but I wasn’t perfect and I had about 2 more hours of work to do.

For dinner, I made a taco bar including tator tots for tator tot tacos! Melanie Shankle who many of you might know mentioned this idea on Instagram and I had a portion of a bag in the freezer. It was a big hit. I used little street taco shells, beef, tomatoes, cheese, lettuce, queso, and tator tots.

So, how was your weekend? Any highlights?

Tomorrow some of our medical services are allowed to re-open. Our governor thinks we may have plateaued? I watched some news this weekend and I am happy to see that things seem to be improving in New York and Spain. I didn’t see anything about Italy, but I hope things are much better there, too. I don’t want to talk about the virus but I can’t stop talking about the virus, you know?

Thank you so much for visiting today and I hope you have a decent Monday.

Amy

Saturday, April 25, 2020

Welcome to your Saturday Quarantine recipe! I am trying to do this on the weekend because I know I struggle with what to cook!

Would you like a really good and really easy homemade mac and cheese recipe? This comes from my cousin by way of her family friend.

What you need:

2 cups creamette or macaroni noodles (I also used penne one time)

1/2 cup butter (one stick)

2 tablespoons flour

1 and 1/2 cups milk (I used skim and it was fine)

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper (I am pretty sure I added a bit more and I also added cajun seasoning because I literally add it to everything)

1 cup cheese (I could not believe how little the amount of cheese was – I used some sharp and some mozzarella)

Note: I made a half recipe below in an 8×8 but this calls for a 9×13.

Look at my governor doing his nightly report in my photo below.

Boil your noodles and drain. I like to undercook a bit because it will still go in the oven.

Melt butter over low heat.

Stir in flour and keep stirring until it reaches a smooth paste consistency.

Slowly pour in milk, stirring constantly.

Add salt and pepper and cook until thick.

Place drained noodles in the baking dish and top with prepared sauce. Top with cheese. I did stir because I was scared not to.

The recipe also says to top with tomato slices. That sounds really good, but I did not do that, either.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. This recipes comes together pretty quickly!

Get in your belly, right?

Let me know if you try it. And, you know what, this is easy enough that your kid(s) could do it!

Amy

Friday, April 24, 2020

Today’s Friday Favorites are a little more like the favorites of yesteryear – or 5 weeks ago! I am happy to link up with Andrea, etc. at Momfessionals.

How was your week? Now that I’m in the third week of distance teaching I have figured out a few more things and the week went a little more smoothly. Did you read my post yesterday about distance learning and teaching? I apologive about my Hello Monday post crashing this week, but I had two great recipes for you this week, too. Sausage squares and limoncello mule cocktail. Maybe you can try one or both this weekend. I don’t know about you, but I am cooking all the time!

I was afraid that I would do an excessive amount of online shopping during this stay at home time period. I ordered one thing from Loft and a few things from Old Navy at the beginning because they were having great sales. I will try to get a post together on these items that were successful. I haven’t wanted to order clothes because I don’t want to deal with returns! Then, about a week ago I started ordering things I needed from Amazon just because I was only doing pick up at Kroger. I felt a little bit bad getting non-essential items. I was also a bit worried about the boxes being contaminated but I am less worried now. I don’t remember what it’s like to go in a store. Some of my friends are shopping in stores that are open as usual, but I’m not. Unfortunately I am having to plan my Kroger orders about 5 days in advance and then adding things as needed.

This is my second time ordering this popcorn. I really like it!

My nails are growing out and getting stronger after removing the dip over a month ago. Megan at Honey We’re Home blog recommended this for an at home manicure. This smoothes out an uneven nail base.

Lindsay of Lindsay’s Sweet World blog recommended the next two things. I love this makeup you guys! She says it’s hard to find in stores and can never find her shade. I took a chance on a shade and I love the texture and consistency.

I am obsessed with white for spring. Or, I will be if I ever go out again. This shirt was $16 and I can’t believe how thick it is and what good quality it is.

I think it was Monday that Bravo did a Ladies of London marathon. Bring it back, Bravo! I am obsessed with all things British. I taped all of the episodes to watch at my convenience.

Monday was gorgeous! I actually put sunscreen on my pasty legs. This may be what summer looks like right here.

Ernie and I visited my school’s baseball field and it was so sad. Seeing empty sports fields just doesn’t feel natural. I am so sorry to senior athletes who lost their spring season.

Have you heard of Noonday Collection jewelry? Check out their website and their mission and if you need a rep let me know in the comments and leave your email. These beauties might be my Mother’s Day gift, if you know what I mean. I can give you the name of my rep if you are interested in anything.

I got my Dinnerly box Monday and I hope my two readers Kate and Jenny like it as much as I do; they were the first to respond about the free boxes that Dinnerly lets any subscribers send. This week we had coconut shrimp, cheeseburgers, and everything but the bagel chicken on the menu.

I am trying to finish my current book and I’m waiting on an Amazon book to come in the mail. I don’t have a Kindle and I don’t want to be on a screen on my ipad to read since my whole day is spent on a screen now.

I think we are in for not great weekend weather, but I hope to get some good takeout one night and maybe do a Zoom cocktail with friends.

What are your plans?

Any highlights from the week?

Stay well,

Amy

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Why is this drink called a mule? Is it because it carries the alcohol into your body? I guess I could google it, but I think I would rather ponder this question for a bit. Also, who knew mules were this cute?

So, if you have ever had a moscow mule, it involves vodka and lime. If you have ever had a Kentucky mule, it switches out the vodka for the beloved bourbon from Kentucky but still retains the lime flavor.

Enter the limoncello mule. I was browsing Pinterest and saw this idea. I have a very old bottle of limoncello that my sister gave me for my birthday and I had a Trader Joe’s ginger beer that is quite old. Did you know that ginger beer isn’t alcoholic?

Here is what I did:

1 shot vodka

1/2 shot glass of limoncello*

1/2 shot glass of lemon juice*

*In the photo I have combined teh limoncello and juice

Mix all together well and pour over ice. Add a splash of ginger beer.

My friend Kellyann of This Blonde’s Shopping Bag told me about Sprite Zero Ginger. Add an extra splash of this if you have it or ginger ale. This makes the drink have a bit of extra carbonation which I love in a cocktail!

You guys, I was shocked by how good this turned out. It was the perfect amount of lemon flavor and lemons scream summer to me. I enjoyed this out on my deck before dinner. What’s the only thing that would’ve made it better? A friend!

How are you holding up? Maybe you can make one of these this weekend? And, make the sausage squares from yesterday to go with it? Just kidding, but read the comments from yesterday, because you all have some good ideas for variations on the recipe!

Amy

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Here is a really easy recipe. You need two tubes of crescent roll dough, a roll of breakfast sausage, and a block of cream cheese.

Preheat oven to 350.

Unroll one pack of crescent roll dough and place on bottom of a sprayed 9×13 Pyrex.

Brown the roll of sausage and when fully cooked, melt in the cream cheese. Place that mixture atop the crescent rolls.

Cover with the second roll of crescent roll dough and bake until golden brown on top – 20-25 minutes depending on your oven.

In the photos below, I made a half recipe.

It taste a lot like biscuits and gravy. I first had these several years ago when our family and my sister in law’s family went to a cabin on the lake for the weekend and my SIL made them. I forgot all about them until my co-worker made them for our end of the school year brunch last year.

Have you tried this recipe?

Amy

Monday, April 2020

Well, if you read my post before it somehow crashed, thank you! I can’t seem to find where it went so I assume it is floating in the cloud.

I will leave you with my weekend photos.

Sorry about that!

Hope to see you back here tomorrow for a post that hopefully won’t disappear!

Amy

Friday, April 17, 2020

I alternate between thinking the weeks go by fast and thinking the weeks go by slowly. This week the weather turned cold and it made it a little harder to get that vitamin D that helps me so much. But, on the brighter side, I got more into my groove with distance teaching. I had more of a set routine and kept my work in one place of the house and that helped. I have a post planned for next week on more specifics about distance learning/teaching and tips if you are interested. I will probably write it anyway as a way for me to document and write out how I felt.

O.k., so my favorites are kind of a recap of the week, too! I will be linking up with Andrea, etc. at http://www.momfessionals.com here. I am not really buying much. I do have a couple of things coming from Amazon every now and then that are necessities, but nothing too exciting to share.

Ernie gets a walk every morning around 7:30 from his favorite – Tom – and then I (his second favorite) take a break and give him a walk around 12. It is good for both of us. I always let him off leash for a bit. Can you see him by the big trees? He gets another walk when Tom gets home and sometimes the boys and I accompany him. I am usually still cooking dinner, though, but it is good to get another little walk in. I want to start taking after dinner bike rides, too.

I did not drive anywhere Sunday or Monday so on Tuesday I decided it was time. Around 3, I went to the drive through liquor store to replenish some of my stock. This is nice to have right now. I have only used this maybe once or twice because under normal circumstances I would prefer going in and browsing, but I remember once when the boys were maybe 6, I drove up to this window and they asked for chicken nuggets. Ha!

I held class three times this week. I was able to record it and post for those who could not make the live class. I had one faculty meeting online, too.

Business on top, comfort on bottom. My bottom half is adorned with leggings and slippers but I have done my hair, a bit of makeup, and a decent shirt each day for my classes.

I have been enjoying my iced coffees this week.

This is my little basement office. I also have a laptop but there is something to be said for keeping your work contained to one area.

I treated the boys to bagels and I got tomato soup and sandwich from Panera on Wednesday. It was a nice treat and the first time we have gotten lunch delivered.

I am starting this new show on regular t.v. It is about a Cuban family that runs a bakery in Miami and the son meets a famous actress. I love the Spanish music and language featured in the show.

I also started watching Listen to Your Heart – It is kind of like Bachelor in Paradise with people coupling up but it involves singing. I was kind of hooked after the first episode. Anyone else watching it?

I had a very disappointing Kroger pick up this week. They did not have several items I requested and I can live without all of them except there was not a single egg to be found. Also, Ernie would like his dog treats but those were not to be found either. Are people still hoarding or overbuying eggs, chicken, ground beef, toilet paper? I am leaving most non-perishables in the car for a while. I feel like a crazy person. If we need it, I go out and wipe it down. The bottles you see are due to my husband. It is a soft drink called Ale 8 and he cannot run out. He is weird.

I started this book – free with Prime – and I was really liking it but now I am getting annoyed by the main character. I will see it through, though. Has anyone read it? I have not been reading much because I just have not found anything I am really into.

Even though it has been cold, I still try to get some fresh air by walking and by sitting outside each day.

And that is about all I have for this week.

This weekend I think we will pick some take out to have. I have cooked every night this week per usual. Last week we had Mexican so it might be time for pizza? We are still watching Community with the boys and really enjoying it. I would like to go on a family walk or hike. I thought it might be fun to go on an urban walk downtown just to see some different scenery.

What were your favorites this week? Will your weekend look different than the week?

Stay healthy at home,

Amy

Thursday, April 16, 2020

How is it already Thursday? Distance learning/teaching is going much better this week and I have a post planned for next week to talk about it.

Today I want to talk about the struggle bus that is cooking every night. I love to cook, but if even I am getting tired of cooking – I feel bad for those who truly don’t enjoy it.

I read a blog from time to time called “The Frugal Girl”. She mentioned a meal delivery service – they send you the ingredients and recipes and you cook it – that I had never heard of called “Dinnerly”. Come to find out it is a Martha Stewart company. Love her or hate her – the girl can cook!

I have now had two deliveries and I am really pleased. FYI – I did Hello Fresh and Blue Apron once each and chose the meals for 2 people – my boys were maybe 11 when I did it. It was too expensive to do for a family of four and I was cooking extra food so it was a bad idea.

Dinnerly, on the other hand, claims to only cost $4 something a person so I am doing 3 meals a week for 4 people to the tune of about $55 a week. We can’t really get one take out meal for 4 for less than $40-50. So, I find this super affordable and I think it will cut my grocery bill a bit. But, that is not reallymy motivation right now. My motivation is that grocery shopping is not easy now.

So, they send you the suggested 3 meals based on your preferences that you filled out and then you can deny one or all of the meals an choose from maybe 5 other options. The meals are simple and real life meals that my family would like.

BBQ Chicken

broccoli

Everything but the bagel seasoned potatoes

I added the corn because it was leftover (By the way, I ordered a pack of already shucked corn on the cob from the produce section on my last Kroger order and it was delicious!)

Here is an example from their website of quesadilas but I didn’t choose that because I make them all the time and already have the ingredients on hand.

Here is another example of lemon pepper chicken and fresh green beans. I added the roasted cauliflower and banana bread.

And, cheeseburgers with potato wedges and I added the corn again.

All of the meat seems great quality and it has been hard to find the chicken and ground beef I normally buy. All of the vegetables are super fresh. They sent giant baking potatoes to make the wedges. They sent nice bags of red potatoes for another side dish. They gave me a whole head of garlic when I only needed a tsp. They also send all the spices needed. They do asssume you will have olive oil, salt, pepper, milk, butter.

Anyway, whether you follow the recipes to a T or kind of use it as a jumping off point for dinner/grocery delivery like I have been doing, I think you might really like it.

Have you ever tried one of these services? Would you?

Amy

P.S. – One of my favorite things about it is that I am out of dinner ideas and this takes the thinking about what we will have out of the equation. Hallelujah!

P.S.S.- I can send a free box to two people – the first two to respond with Name and Email address get it. But there is a catch – I believe you have to give your credit card info to get the box and then you can cancel but you have to cancel quickly so you don’t get charged.