Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa

Monday, April 4, 2022

This is a special Monday because I’m on Spring Break! When we return to school in a week, we only have 6 weeks remaining. It’s time to link up with Holly and Sarah for Hello Monday!

Spring Break actually started at the end of the day Thursday for me. Friday was a flex day for teachers – meaning we could have already worked it in the summer, which I did.

I woke up leisurely and hit the gym at a more civilized hour. I had missed the last two days due to tiredness and no electricity.

I had asked Mason if he wanted to do lunch. Jack had a choir trip on Friday. So, I met Mason and he picked a soup and sandwich place. I got an orzo chicken soup and a half of a sandwich and he got a French dip.

We had a nice time together and went to Trader Joe’s after lunch.

For dinner, I made Tom and I some healthy Chinese fake out.

And I had an indoor Peep S’more for dessert!

I watched Marry Me – or tried to. I was so tired. I think it was just ok.

I felt better Saturday morning and made myself a hashbrown egg mixture.

I also had my cake batter protein cold brew.

I am really enjoying this book.

Tom and I took Ernie to the river for a swim. It was chilly!

Then, I went home and showered and ate lunch and ran a couple of errands. I hadn’t been to this boutique in a while. I didn’t buy anything.

New to me consignment ballet flats I will tell you about soon:

I did this mani:

J and M came home to hang out and we watched some Marvelous Mrs. Maisel together, but then I had plans in the evening to go to Erica’s birthday dinner.

I ordered shrimp vodka pasta and it was good!

The cake was strawberry:

It was fun to help her celebrate this milestone birthday!

Sunday morning I had coffee, read, talked to J and M and they left for a movie that they’ve been wanting to see. It was in Japanese with subtitles.

Tom and I went down to the marina to see how many boats were still wrapped and to just look at the river.

Then, we shared some nachos at a Mexican restaurant.

Elote for Tom:

Then, I spent some time reading in the sun. Ah, that was exactly what I needed!

I made salmon, broccoli, and ranch potatoes for dinner:

It was a full weekend and is there anything better than having a Monday off?

What was the highlight of your weekend?

Amy

Friday, April 1, 2022

It is April! And, today is my first day of Spring Break!

I had a post scheduled for yesterday and it didn’t post and I didn’t have any power. I will just save it for Fashion Files next week! Wednesday night it started storming at bedtime and we lost power around 10:30 p.m. I still didn’t have power in the morning so NO COFFEE! I took a shower by candlelight and went to Starbuck’s and then work at 6:00 a.m. It was a long day!

I am linking up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites, though!

Here are some things that made me happy this week:

I really like these eye patches and I do think they help.

I used them one morning this week when I looked extra tired.

I did my own Essie manicure called “Ripple Reflect”.

Erica, my colleague and meal prep partner, is turning 40 soon and she had a photo shoot:

She had a lot of fun doing it!

My twin niece and nephew sent me these pictures from their Spanish teacher. She has a special sombrero and they have to stand up and be sung to!

I sing to all the people with birthdays in that month on the first day of the month and give them a birthday sticker in Spanish. I might steal her sombrero idea, though!

I made it to the gym just twice this week if you don’t count Sunday.

Creeping on Tom:

We played Spanish Scrabble at the end of class one day:

I hit 1000 posts! Who knew I had that much to say?

I ordered Peeps in my Kroger pick up for S’mores that I hope to make soon!

I also ordered this and it might just be my new favorite hard seltzer!

We didn’t plan this, but yesterday we both wore t-shirts with the same vibe:

Erica’s says “Nope Not Today” and mine says “Fiesta like there’s no mañana”.

After school yesterday, even though it felt like winter break, we had to celebrate the start of Spring Break with martinis at Martini’s.

Espresso martini:

And fries, zucchini fries, and focacia bread!

What were your favorites this week? I hope you had many!

Amy

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

Thank you for your kind responses to my Mental Health post yesterday! I think we are all in the same boat – constantly working to do the things we know we NEED to do to be mentally healthy.

As I’m writing this on Tuesday afternoon, it is still so cold! But, my mind is on spring fashion…

Do you have a pair of cut-off jean shorts? Jorts? Daisy Dukes?

They are the jeans of summer – duh; they are jeans! Anything you wear with jeans now can be put with cut-offs during the weather transition period and you can even wear them into fall. Everyone needs a pair. Calm down; I will give some options for different ages and different body types.

I think they can work for errands, picnics, concerts, festivals, flea markets, farmer’s markets, a casual dinner out, and more. They are just so easy to throw on and I was reaching for mine so much last summer!

If you aren’t comfortable with a true cut-off, what about these? Target has lots of affordable options. I personally love the Universal Thread line. There is way more on the Target.com site than in the store. Order a few sizes and styles and do returns in store for the ones you don’t like.

Also, there are so many types of denim – you can find ones with more stretch than others. If you want to wear this trend, shop around and don’t give up.

Also, I have a pair of denim drawstring shorts that might be more your style. You could look for something like that.

This needs to be said again and again: It is worth it to try them on in your own home with your own clothes and your better lighting. I forget this from time to time!

But, wait! Do a bit of self tanner a few days before so that pasty white legs don’t make you sad. It really does help.

I am 5’4 and I like a 3.5 inch inseam. You may have to try on different lengths to see what works best for your style and your body type.

Here’s the sad truth:

You probably need to go up at least one size – maybe two – in cut-offs. The size is just a number, remember. They will hang better if you go up, I think. And, if you are doing anything that says “high rise”, I definitely think you have to go up a size.

I ordered a pink and black pair from Walmart.com. I know; I will eat my words. Walmart.com isn’t so bad. In fact, it’s pretty darn good. I apologize.

Now I have blue denim, white denim cut-offs, and pink and black denim cut-offs. I go all in.

If you aren’t sure how much you will wear cut-offs in 2022, it makes sense to buy a cheaper “starter” pair as many in the blog world have coined it.

Now, what about shoes?

Of course you can go the sneaker of flip flop route.

If you want to look a bit less casual, Birkenstocks are the perfect shoe for cut-offs. You can see in the above photos that I usually chose my gold Birks.

I also love the look of my lace up flat sandals with my cut offs.

I really like a long sleeve with cut-offs for some reason.

Do you wear cut-offs?

What’s your preferred brand and style?

Amy

Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Now, don’t get too scared by my blog post title. I’m not going to go too deep; rather, I’m going to share some things that have greatly improved my mental health over the last few months. And, don’t think I have this “mental health” thing down. I most certainly do not. I don’t always do the things that I know would make me mentally healthy.

-I have limited my news intake. Now, I’m not saying that I bury my head in the sand. I read the news rather than watch it or talk to my husband for updates. He takes in so much news and I have told him that I think it is deeply affecting him. Yes, it’s good to be aware, but you also need to protect yourself and know yourself and what you are sensitive about. Tom seems like a stoic person on the outside, but he is sensitive on the inside.

-I have been trying to walk Ernie with Tom before dinner, instead of continuing to prepare dinner like I did in the past. This gives me an extra few steps and I think Tom really likes debriefing his day with me like this. I have found that getting outside one more time is really good for me. I try to have dinner plated and then we just warm it up. Bonus points for me if I already have the dinner pots and pans washed, too.

-I have really stopped checking work email at home. I just check it one last time at work before leaving after school and then I wait until I arrive the next morning. I used to check work email on my phone before getting out of bed. Why? Nothing is urgent in my line of work.

-My principal sends a video of him talking about the week ahead with a power point at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday mornings. This video is anywhere from 8-15 minutes long. He even says “Happy Sunday!” like he expects us to watch it right then. I now watch it on Monday morning. I just change it to “Happy Monday” in my head and all is good. I have heard from many colleagues that they don’t watch it at all. I’m too much of a rule follower to go that far, plus I do want to be informed! Many of my colleagues say they just wish he would put the video content in an email form because watching a video seems “extra”.

-Making lists – sometimes just getting something out of my brain and on paper really helps.

-Getting outside! I think we all know how good this is. I even had the chance last week to sit in a chair in the grass by the river and take my shoes off and touch the ground with my bare feet. This is supposed to be really good for you. It can’t hurt, unless you put your foot on a nail or dog doo doo.

-Exercising! Yes, it really does help. Tom is so cranky when he doesn’t exercise. He goes to the gym 6-7 days a week on top of lots of walking with Ernie and bike riding when it gets warmer. He also paddleboards on the river. I will never be on that level, but I love starting my day with a workout now and it really does positively affect my mood all day.

-I am outsourcing or not doing some things that stress me out. I love strolling through a grocery store leisurely to see what new products are out and to get inspiration for meals, but right now I don’t have that kind of time. I use my Kroger app to order the following week’s groceries on Tuesday or Wednesday evenings these days and then do my pick up immediately after school on Wednesday or Thursday. I feel like I have given myself the gift of time back on the weekends. It feels great to be fully stocked! If I forget something, running in to get a couple of items seems easy.

-I make it a point to either see or talk on the phone and to hear a voice of at least one friend a week.

-I treat myself with love and kindness. I give myself the good smells that I enjoy, the fabrics that feel good, the hot drinks I enjoy, the rest I need, etc. You must treat yourself well.

-I do less. Erica had maybe 5 errands to run after school one day. I made the comment that she was doing more in one day than I do in a week. Sometimes you just can’t do less, but by being organized and planning ahead you can often “bundle” your errands or make do with things you already have. I think this is especially important right now with high gas prices. I go to the library and Trader Joe’s at the same time because they are close, for example.

-I try to laugh everyday. I’m lucky that my job provides lots of laughs. I can also be assured of laughter when I listen to my favorite podcast Watch What Crappens. The hosts recap and make fun of shows on Bravo.

-I stopped wearing a mask to school! I have noticed in the almost 3 weeks without the mask mandate that more and more kids are feeling comfortable and taking theirs off. I don’t know of any kids who are currently positive and quarantining. We still provide weekly testing for those involved in sports and activities and those that just want to be tested. I still have maybe 1/4 to 1/3 wearing masks in each class.

Quick Story:

I played a silly game on Friday in my Spanish 3 classes. They have never played this game before, but my AP class has played it and loves it.

I divide the class into teams of 4-5 students and each team has a “runner”. I shout out an object in Spanish and the teams have to figure out what that object is and see who on their team has it and the first team to “run” the item to my front table gets a point. I shout things like “paraguas” which means umbrella or “un examen con una nota de U” which means a test with a grade of a U (which means failing).

You also need to know that our students can have lockers, but no one uses them anymore. They carry their worldly posessions in backpacks to 7 classes each day. When I was in high school, we went to our lockers between each class, and only took a notebook and a book to class. Things have changed since the 80s!

There were so many genuine smiles during this game. They laughed and laughed at the crazy things people carry around in their backpacks. I don’t think I caught anyone looking at their phone during the game. It really warmed my heart. I am still thinking about seeing all of those smiling faces. Man, it was good for soul and my mental health!

How are you doing right now with your mental health?

What do you do to stay mentally healthy?

Amy

Monday, March 28, 2022

It’s time to link up with Sarah and Holly!

Friday night the college kids came home for dinner and we got Shiraz Mediterranean and watch some tv together!

Saturday morning I got out the Trader Joe’s bagels I keep in the freezer. We just can’t use them fast enough so the freezer is a life saver.

I did some blog catch up and had my new fave cake batter delight. Walmart.com is sending me more because this flavor is hard to find in stores.

I made a trip to the library and got to see the spring display in person!

I did a new Essie Day Drift Away mani.

And, it was super cold all weekend, but it warmed up enough Saturday afternoon for me to read a new library cookbook.

Saturday night J and M had to go tear down the set of the play and Tom was all too happy to stay home. I had plans to go to a French restaurant with my two college besties.

Yum!

I think I have given up on this…

in favor of this… it is like Below Deck from Bravo in book form!

Sunday was meal prep – still on the breakfast burrito kick!

I use these from The Dollar Tree:

And, I made my mid-morning hard boiled eggs:

I enjoyed a chocolate iced coffee. I love my frother! Look at that!

I went to the gym and to The Dollar Tree for some school stuff. The college kids had come back after the tearing down the set Saturday night so they hung out with us some more and left at 4:00 and Tom and I went to see the movie Lost City with Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum. It was cute.

And that’s was it!

What was the highlight of your weekend?

Amy

Friday, March 25, 2022

I love you, Friday! It’s time to link up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites.

One big favorite is signs of spring!

I stole this photo from their social media, but look what my library has done now:

So pretty! Remember the green display for St. Patrick’s Day?

Look at my tree blooming!

We finally got our Thin Mints! I let myself have several one time and hopefully I’m done! Tom is still enjoying them.

Another favorite was more spaghetti squash! This time I did a lasagna thing with it! Yum!

Look at baby Ernie that turned up on Facebook!

I made a really yummy teriyaki chicken dish!

I also did meal prep smarter this week. I took the squash for our lunch the next day and I took the teriyaki for our lunch the next day.

We had a fun ceremony for Spanish Honor Society this week!

I made the sherbet punch with rainbow sherbet and ginger-ale.

New favorite flavor:

OMG – so delicious! Anyone tried it?

Another new favorite flavor:

I think LaCroix might be my favorite brand? What is your favorite sparkling water?

I did a Kroger pick up! Love my Wednesday or Thursday pick ups. It is so nice to be fully stocked going into the weekend and I think they have more in stock, too.

And, that’s about it. I feel like all I did was work, eat, and sleep! I made it to the gym three mornings and I walked after school once.

What was your favorite this week?

Amy

Wednesday, March 23, 2022

This is a re-post from last March! I am going to try this with my healthy noodles or spaghetti squash. I didn’t have a fresh blog idea so I thought I would bring back a recipe in case anyone is struggling right now. I may not see you back here until Friday for Favorites; I’m on the struggle bus before Spring Break!

O.k., here is a recipe that Tom really, really liked! I have now made it three times and I am really bad about following recipes so each time I have done it slightly differently! Also, I didn’t really know what to call it! I am no food blogger, so I hope I can explain this well. I know we don’t like back stories with our recipes, but indulge me for just a moment!

I saw a recipe and I thought it said Balsamic Chicken, but it actually said Bruschetta Chicken. So, I basically added the balsamic glaze to the bruschetta chicken recipe. I also decided to employ the Tik Tok pasta method and I added angel hair. So, this is really Tik Tok Balsamic Bruschetta Chicken! Whoa!

You need:

chicken (I like the tenders)

grape tomatoes

red onion

basil (if you want; mine went bad so I left it out this time)

garlic

salt

pepper

angel hair (optional – you could do zucchini noodles or just have the chicken)

olive oil

balsamic glaze

mozzarella (I like fresh and I forgot to picture it)

Trigger warning! Raw chicken!

Preheat oven to 400 and assemble your tomatoes, red onion, garlic, salt, pepper, olive oil. Don’t get mad at me, but just throw in the amounts you want. You really can’t mess it up.

That will go in the oven for about 20 minutes.

Now you will use my “moist method” for chicken on the stove top. Trigger warning! Raw chicken!

Season chicken with s, p, and garlic powder if desired. Use medium high heat and put seasoned side down and then season other side. Cook first side until you see white edges.

Flip to other side and cook for about 3 more minutes. Now cover the pan and keep on heat for another 2 minutes or so. Remove from heat but leave lid on. This magically helps to keep chicken moist.

Now drizzle balsamic glaze.

Here’s where my photos kinda dropped off. Your tomato mixture should be done. Take out and smush the tomatoes and mix all around. Put a piece of fresh mozzarella on top of each chicken piece and put in oven for a couple of minutes.

Serve!

Now, this really opens up lots of possibilities. You could totally leave the balsamic out and add this chicken to the true Tik Tok pasta recipe. You could also leave the pasta out and just add the chicken.

I find myself wondering why I haven’t been doing this to tomatoes all of my life. I really like the flavor!

Also, in the summer I love to do a grape tomato and a tiny mozzarella ball on a toothpick and then drizzle balsamic. The flavors are amazing.

Let me know if you try it!

Amy

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

Let’s get those pigs ready! Let’s take inventory!

I feel like I’m getting to see old friends when I change shoe seasons.

Here is what I like to do:

I first ask myself these questions…

1. Am I excited to see this shoe?
2. Would I still buy this shoe today?
3. Does this shoe still fit my foot, my lifestyle, my clothing style?

I was able to answer YES to the Birkenstock/Faux Birk/Crockenstock collection below:

From left to right…

I wore these gold Birks so much last summer. They are pricey, but I find that they last for multiple seasons. I have already worn them over the weekend, too.

The black patent Birkenstocks were a Mother’s Day gift like 6 years ago. Remember that cost per wear philosophy? Yup.

The black plastic were worn a ton and they came from Target. Still love them. They are a bit lower than I prefer in the heel and the arch, though.

The white plastic were from Amazon and I prefer their heel and arch height.

The Tory Burch were $70 ish at a consignment shop like 8 years ago. I have worn them a lot when I wanted a bit of an elevated look withouth the heel height.

I love the MIA clog sandals. Would you believe I bought these like three years ago? Now, you see this style everywhere! I love these for going out to dinner. They work with jeans and dresses.

The black are Soda brand from Amazon and I have had them for maybe 4 years. I’m not sure if they are still in style, but I always struggle with black sandals for summer.

I love the women sandal. Those were from last year and I wore them out a lot.

And, finally..the Marc Fisher lace up gold. I was “influenced” by a blogger and I loved them so much. I am excited to wear them!

And, as far as new spring and summer sandals for 2022..

Introducing the Sorel blush sandals from a consignment store for $17. I think they retail for about $120.

And, I wanted to try the clear trend. I think these from Target are gonna be good. I love the woven heel. I first saw these on Instagram because of Lindsay.

I still have them attached, so this photo was awkward. Also, I have a bit of hammertime going on in the foot department, but I plan to get a professional pedicure soon.

One should never make others look at their feet, so for this I apologize. I did it for you; I wanted you to be able to see the sandal.

Some people talk about a “starter” piece to see if they fully embrace/like a trend. So, Target is a good place to try trends, even though I have a rule to not buy Target shoes if I can help it. I have failed from time to time. The siren song is just too strong.

I am not sure what holes are in my spring and summer shoe wardrobe yet.

I do have some in my donate/sell pile. I just know that I shouldn’t keep something that wasn’t able to be answered affirmatively in my questions above.

What about you? Have you been sandal shopping? Any trends you want to try? Any favorite summer shoe brands? I guess you can tell I love Birkenstock, but I also love Reef. They make the best flip flops in my opinion.

Amy

Monday, March 21, 2022

I still have 9 more school days to go until Spring Break! Limping along! I am happy to link up with Holly and Sarah today for Hello Monday!

Let’s go back to Thursday…I put Jen’s corned beef brisket in the crockpot with veggies, but I wanted to do something fun and the weather was gorgeous!

So, green beer and first time of the year 2022 at Captain’s Quarters on the river!

with Erica, my co-worker, meal prep partner, and friend who is always game for a happy hour.

This is new freedom for me to be able to go out after school on a whim- just a couple of years ago and I was still running around with after school activities and mom duties, you know!

We both agreed that just sitting by the water helped to relieve some stress.

Then, I was home by 5:30 to have dinner!

Friday lunch was buffalo turkey meatballs – yum! This was Erica’s turn:

I got a fun photo after school of my seniors who were in the musical…

They were eating at McAlister’s before call time.

It was time for the first live theatre event at my school since 2019!

But first, dinner at Mojito! Elizabeth had a sick dog and couldn’t end up joining Erica and I, sadly.

I ordered salad with grilled chicken:

and we split some potatoes:

and Erica got a mushroom flatbread:

I got to sit next to a former student at the play!

and current students were in front of us:

Our Snoopy!

Snoopy and Snoopy’s beau:

I got home around 9:30 and then watched some tv and fell asleep on the couch. As I was heading to bed, the tornado sirens started going off! I had no idea that the weather had turned.

In addition to the sirens, our phones went off, and our Alexas went off. They kept extending the warnings and I am not kidding when I say the sirens went off for almost an hour from 11:00 p.m.- midnight. Our college kids had been hanging out together and the dorms had them huddle in the laundry room. They were texting me and a bit shaken, I think.

I just can’t sleep in that much anymore, so I was tired all day Saturday.

Saturday morning coffee – much needed:

I did some cleaning, organizing, and a bit of cooking. I ran to Trader Joe’s and did the gym.

Then, Tom and I left to try to get brunch or lunch and we tried 3 places and it wasn’t meant to be! We tried two that had a 40 minute wait and the third was no wait, but we couldn’t get waited on and had to leave in time to see a tiny college play that both kids were in. They had small roles, but since we are close we wanted to see it. There were like 20 people in the audience and it was like a horror videogame theme. I am glad I had a Built bar in my purse.

Group of friends:

So, we left and I finally got my lunch at 5:00!

I had an Angry Orchard:

Tom wanted nachos and I had some, too:

I had a salad and

grilled chicken tenders with buffalo sauce:

Yum!

I was so tired when we got home but I decided to try Life & Beth – the new Amy Schumer show. Um, not good, unless I was just too tired to focus…

I got in bed early and then got up Sunday around 7:00 and did a bit of reading and coffee drinking…

and then some meal prep:

I really enjoy this morning weekend time and had an iced foamy protein coffee, too.

I am trying to either wear all of my spring stuff or put it in the donate/sell pile. I steamed some stuff for the week. I’m obsessed with steaming!

Then, on the first official day of spring…I got out my lemon decor!

It was beautiful out and I got some needed Vitamin D. But, I also had a quick Target return and ironically enough, I had to buy my Vitamin D gummies – ha!

The college kids were coming home for the day! They came for lunch and dinner and then went back. I made them some snacks and a…

copycat McD’s honey mustard snack wrap:

and homemade mac and cheese with the giant noodles from Trader Joe’s. I used my cousin April’s recipe!

And, they were happy to have their mom’s cooking! We hung out and watched a couple of shows and chatted. They are already starting to wrap up the second semester – believe it or not. I think classes end in about a month and then they have a study break and then finals. It has gone by so quickly.

How was your weekend? As usual, we need another day, right?

Amy

Thursday, March 17, 2022

Happy St. Patrick’s Day and happy birthday to my sister Kate!

It’s time to link up with Jill and Kellyann for Fashion Files.

Let’s go back to last week…

This is the day the mask came off! I think you can tell how happy I am. I am wearing my Walmart Scoop blazer (I have it in black, too, and I have worn each of them 3-4 times already!) I wish you could feel the material. It’s divine. I don’t use that word lightly. I wore my light jeans and my new bow mule flats – more information to come on those…

Don’t you love my photo backgrounds? Some bloggers find cool painted buildings or architectural details, but I have lockers.

The next day I wore my old JCPenney Liz Claiborne (name dropping!) chambray popover that finally fits correctly and my Hue jeggings with the bow mule flats.

Here is a better view:

I picked these up a few weeks ago at DSW.

Saturday for the pre-parade party and parade I wore a new green Target cardigan and my new green beer earrings and shamrock headband. Beth is in the middle and Erica is on the right. Erica doesn’t get excited about holidays at all, does she?

I love this dress! I bought it at Target back in the fall and it has pockets. So, yes, it has a bit of that Target Little House on the Prairie vibe, but I am ok with that. My gold clogs are a lewk, right? I cannot tell you how many students that I don’t even know tell me that they love them. And, it’s mostly boys! Street cred, maybe? I wonder if they talk about me and say, “you know – that middle aged teacher lady with those gold clogs?”

I just want to tell you again how perfect these gold hoops are. They would make an excellent gift. They look way more expensive than $12 and they are lightweight! Love!

I ordered this blouse from an online boutique called Shop.Set.Apart because I fell in love at first sight. It’s a light pink background. I love palm leaves. I’m not sure about the jeans or the clogs with it, but oh well. I found the boutique because the owner lost weight on WW and sometimes gives recipes/meal ideas. I enjoy these little boutiques because I feel like they have different things than what you see in the stores. Do you have any favorite online boutiques. Sizing can be tricky sometimes, though.

Do you have a favorite outfit from above? This is the craziest time to get dressed. One of the above outfits was for 30 degrees and one was for 70 degrees!

Thanks for visiting me,

Amy