Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

If you read my post yesterday, I mentioned a trip to Trader Joe’s. I really enjoy getting out early on a Saturday morning around 8:00 and getting my errands knocked out. Trader Joe’s is a fun errand for me! But, I hadn’t been since maybe December because I didn’t want to be too tempted by treats.

Do you see a big increase in grocery prices? I had gotten our grocery bill down to about $400 – $500 a month for just Tom and I last fall. I am doing weekly grocery pick ups from Kroger and spending around $150-$170 a week now. Now, I will say that sometimes eating healthy can cost a bit more which seems kind of weird, but I have found it to be true.

I felt a bit bad spending $70 on this trip after just spending $150 at Kroger on Wednesday, but I knew the kids were coming home and that I was making a Valentine’s dinner for Monday – and it was my turn to make 3 lunches for Erica and I. Plus, we are eating out/getting take out less than ever before, I think.

So, here we go…

I am loving sparkling waters. These are good! I think they have a cocktail feel and they are good for the afternoons.

I love the produce at Trader Joe’s. Is it cheaper than the supermarket? Probably not.

These are one of my favorite things from TJ’s – these mini baguettes are 3 WW points each and they are amazing. I like to keep some in the freezer to go with pasta or just to have with some olive oil, salt, and pepper.

I love to keep this baguette in my freezer, too. This makes a great hot sub sandwich bread.

cilantro, carrots, apples, cucumber, onion, broccoli, and salad mix:

I like these for nachos because they are very sturdy, but to be honest – I do not love Trader Joe’s chips and crackers. The only think I really, really like are their plantain chips. My family is very discriminating about their snack foods and are very brand loyal.

This is a new discovery and I love it! I have been using regular instant coffee crystals for my iced coffee/protein shake. This really blends well because it is made especially for cold brew.

TJ’s spice prices can’t be beat. I needed pepper and I have learned that not all everything but the bagel seasonings are created equally. TJ has the best blend!

I had plans to do a weekend and Valentine’s charcuterie board. The wine soaked cheese is a longtime favorite.

I had plans to make chocolate chip pancakes for a early Valentine for J and M.

This rice is soooo good and it is often out of stock because it is so popular. It contains 3 microwave pouches and you keep it in the freezer. You will never make rice again.

I love these giant macaroni noodles for homemade mac and cheese.

Their olive oil prices can’t be beat.

These giant soft pretzels are great to keep in the freezer. The air fryer makes these taste amazing!

And, I got Tom’s card and candy at TJs. Their cards are soooo cute! I am a big believer in Dollar Tree cards that are 2 for $1, but the cards at TJ’s are only $1 and they look much more expensive. The dark chocolate peanut butter cups kept in the freezer and amazing.

If you have a Trader Joe’s near you, what are your faves?

Amy

PS – I’m taking a break tomorrow but I will back on Thursday for Fashion Files and Friday for Friday Faves!

Monday, February 14, 2022

Happy Valentine’s Day! I will be wearing my Care Bear heart sweater today in case you were wondering!

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

How was your weekend? Mine was pretty great after two verrrryyyyyy borrrringggg weekends – the first was my Covid weekend and the second was the snow/ice weekend.

I made it through a 5 day in person teaching week, ya’ll! I will consider that a major win! It was actually a really great week. I love my students. It’s time to take the masks off very soon, though. This is my opinion and I’m sticking with it. My sister in Indiana has been mask-less and my sister in Ohio gets to take off the mask today! I’m so stinking sick of talking about Covid but I also think it odd when bloggers don’t address it (again – just my opinion). I need to see smiles and they need to see mine. I have way more reasons, but that’s all I’m gonna say.

After school, Erica, Elizabeth and I went to happy hour. It had been about 3 weeks since the last time we got together for a happy hour. We picked an upscale pizza place near school that has really great apps and cocktails and a happy hour discount.

I got a really good lemon basil cocktail that just sounded good.

These are homemade potato chip nachos!

And, pretzels and beer cheese!

We only stayed for about an hour and then I went home and sat outside for a bit.

Dinner was tomato soup and grilled cheese for Tom and a frittata and salad for me. My dinner was very close to zero WW points after the indulgent happy hour. I went to bed at 9!

Saturday morning I finished this:

I really enjoyed it! I have enjoyed all of this duos’ books.

Ok – follow up… some of you sent me this information and I saw it a couple of other places. The sweater I ordered from Target was quite controversial because it would have had to have been made in a sweat shop for the price they were charging (and I’m sure that is not the only piece of fast fashion and that’s why I really do want to do better with this). I had already ordered it when I heard that. Then, my order was on the way and then it wasn’t so I figured it was out of stock, which was fine. Then, it mysteriously appeared on my doorstep.

It is really short and the sleeves are really long. It was kinda scratchy material. Anyway, I was gonna return it anyway after all of that. So, I went to Target Saturday morning.

I came home with Pixi brand eye patches and I’m in love. Why haven’t I known about these?

They are kinda hard to get in the exact right place but I really saw a difference! Love! I can’t wait to find some less expensive options. Leave me a rec if you have one. They Pixi brand costs $24 and maybe I will only use if I’m going out? So, I love the texture and the feel and they really made a difference so maybe that’s not a bad price.

I also went through the car wash which was much needed!

I was just so happy to be out on a Saturday morning running errands! Isn’t that weird? I think because Monday through Friday were like groundhog day it was such a treat. I get up at 5:00, leave the house at 6:45, get home between 2:45-4:00 depending on meetings and other stuff.

So, Target, car wash, and then Trader Joe’s and I was home by like 9:00 a.m.!

Tomorrow I will show you what I picked at Trader Joe’s! I hadn’t been since maybe December? I have kinda been avoiding it because there are so many temptations there. I want to buy all the fun treats.

So, I unloaded, cleaned, made my breakfast, took a shower, and then sat down to watch a movie and paint my nails. I did three coats of Essie marshmallow.

I watched most of the movie on Amazon Prime called I Want You Back. Oh my gosh – I don’t know if it was just my mood but I laughed out loud multiple times in my house alone. Let me know if you watched it and what you thought. I ran out of time to finish it because Tom and Ernie got home and I didn’t get back to it, but I can’t wait.

Our washer died Friday and Tom took one for the team and went hunting for a replacement that was in stock. He only had luck at a locally owned place (that’s better in my book anyway!) and even though our dryer still works, we decided to buy a new set for the new(ish) mudroom. They said that these appliances only last about 8 years now! So, we went with LG stainless front loaders and they will be delivered Thursday.

Jack and Mason came home together around 3:00! I made snacks and we watched some t.v. and chatted. I hadn’t had both of them home together in quite awhile.

We had reservations at the Irish restaurant The Raven with my high school friends that had come to town. These people all graduated together!

I had the leek and potato soup and

a decomposed salad – yum!

The occasion was that one of the friends was playing in his band but it didn’t start until 9:00 which means later than that!

It was sooooooo loud and soooooo packed. I didn’t make it very long. I was also anxious to get home to my kids and spend more time with them.

Sunday morning meal prep! I decided to do 2 point breakfast burritos this week:

It is just a bit of cheese, egg, and roasted potato. I forgot to get turkey sausage crumbles to add.

All read to grab and go!

I roasted broccoli along with more potatoes:

I made my mushroom and onion mixture:

I made a couple of scrambled eggs with this mixture for breakfast:

And, I started this book:

There was a lot of excitement about the Superbowl around here as the home of the Cincinnati Bengals are pretty close to here. Why does the game have to be on a Sunday? We always have lots of tired students on the Monday after Superbowl and combined with Valentine’s Day?!?!?!? Send positive thoughts to teachers everywhere!

What was the highlight of your weekend? I hope you had a great one!

Amy

Thursday, February 10, 2022

It is time once again to link up with Jill and Kellyann for Fashion Files!

First of all, say hello to my new earrings! Are these popular where you live? They are in all of our little locally owned boutiques. They have White Claw, a mojito, a mint julep (Kentucky Derby drink), and more. They are lightweight (that is the only kind of earring I wear) and I think they will be so cute all spring and summer.

Monday was a Monday so I chose to wear black hearts! I added the red clogs! These clogs are surprisingly comfortable.

Tuesday I took a bad tripod photo but I wore my Loft floral with my Target Universal Thread cardigan and my gold clogs. I got a lot of teen compliments on my gold clogs (but sadly no one liked my red ones).

We don’t have a dress code and I used to never wear jeans. But, this year seems very jeans worthy. I really don’t have many pants and I am looking forward to dresses and skirts as soon as it warms a bit and I can get my self tanner routine going.

Yesterday I wore my trusty Chico’s pants, a black shell, and my very old pink faux Burberry from Amazon. I wasn’t sure about the booties with this outfit. I’m still not.

I plan to wear all of my pink and red until Monday is over!

Next week we have spirit week for basketball homecoming so my outfits should be very interesting… ha!

What have you been wearing lately? Any favorites from above?

Amy

Wednesday, February 8, 2022

I really want to be a plant lady! It doesn’t come naturally to me. My issue has always been that I water too much. I also didn’t know a thing about a thing called drainage – ya gotta have it. Now I try to neglect my plants a little. I am a recovering helicopter plant mom.

Let me introduce you to my plant family:

I have a monster peace lily and a smaller peace lily from my Dad’s funeral. These live in the mudroom where they get lots of sunlight and I really think they like the noise of the washer and dryer.

I love my spider plant and he lives in my bedroom which currently has construction materials in it.

I don’t know what this is called but I bought him at the flea market at the end of the summer. I liked the neon green color of the leaves.

This was a birthday gift from a friend and it is called “Mother-in-law’s Tongue” I think. I love, love, love the white planter it came in, too.

This pothos is my pride and joy. I ordered one from Amazon and my former student tried to revive it to no avail. She has a little plant biz and I bought this replacement one from her. She put rocks in with the soil for drainage I think she said. I love watching it get longer and longer and I really covet those who have crazy long ones!

This tropical-ish guy lived outside and I have had him for maybe 2 years? I brought him in and honestly I think he looks sad inside, but it’s just too cold. He is sitting next to the Covid testing kits – maybe that’s why.

I bought my first air plant this fall. You spritz them and give them a full on bath every now and again, but they have no dirt. I want to get one of those cute plant spray bottles that look old-timey.

I also have a few artificial plants (mostly really small) sitting in various places. I like a good fake and I don’t think it’s bad to mix a few in.

Now, I know nothing about re-potting! Do I need to? Any suggestions on plants to add to my collection? I have a problem. I am running out of things to set them on. I would love to have a row of plants somewhere. Maybe a bench? I love to look at plant decor on Pinterest.

Are you a plant lady? Or a plant man? Plant person?

Amy

Tuesday, February 8, 2022

It is time to link up with Whitney and others – we can talk about whatever suits our fancy!

I want to talk about hot rollers! Did you know they are back in style? I never got rid of my last set – until last month. They were the really big size and all the same size and they didn’t give me much curl. I have really fine hair but a lot of it.

I want to apologize if you think I have been talking about this topic too much. This is the last time – I promise!

So, I went to Amazon to get a new set with multiple sizes.

The final product:

I bought this set. I don’t love it. I was trying to save money so I went with a cheaper option. I don’t like the clips and I don’t like the way the rollers are stored on a metal bar. I guess I will get used to it if I use it a lot.

Pros:

It is super quick to roll up your hair and then do your makeup while the curl is setting. You really only have to remove them and go.

It looks very natural – maybe she didn’t do anything to her hair and just woke up like that?

Cons:

I like the curls that I achieve with my 1 inch barrel traditional curling iron better.

Start with clean, straight hair.

I like to dirty it up a bit with the dry shampoo so that the curl holds better. I also like to use this heat spray.

Roll it up!

Take it down and spray with hairspray before doing anything else. Or, at least that is what I do.

Style with comb or fingers.

I could have added a few tweaks with my curling iron but I didn’t.

Curling iron hair:

I guess there is not a huge difference now that I look at the photos.

So, I think hot rollers are a great option and might be all the curl that some of you all might want in your life.

Do you hot roll?

Did you hot roll?

Amy

Monday, February 7, 2022

Well, hello again Monday…it is time to link up with Sarah and Holly to share about our weekends.

So…my regular readers now that I missed two weeks ago at the end of the week because I had Covid and then spent the weekend stuck at home. A week ago I returned to school and had three days before we spent Thursday at home doing virtual learning in preparation for a big ice storm. Then, Friday they just called a do nothing good old fashioned snow day because they were worried that some would love power and we got snow on top of the ice. I really wanted Jack and Mason to come home from college because their classes were cancelled, too, but they stayed on campus. It still feels weird to have an empty nester snow day.

The ice/slush on Thursday:

The snow that came after:

I finished this book and I do recommend it. It was different than I thought it would be.

I stayed home from Wednesday afternoon until Friday late afternoon and then the cabin fever set in! But, nothing was really open on Friday. I did go look around Barnes and Noble for a bit.

I got take out Mexican (I have been cooking almost exclusively/eating at home for so long!) and made my skinny margarita. I used my new wine glasses. Mason told me they looked like rejects from the Star Trek set last time he was home and saw them.

Tom and I generally split fajitas and then I use my own low carb tortilla. I don’t feel like I’m sacrificing at all! And, it was Friday so I did have some chips and queso, too.

I started this and it’s so good so far! I really love Christina Lauren books.

Friday night I fell asleep bingeing Younger. I already think I will need to go back and start it over because it’s so good.

Saturday morning felt like a Sunday after being at home for so long. I made myself a Keto bread egg in the hole.

The roads were still kinda bad, but I was ready to go run errands. I needed to get out! I was happy to enter Kroger for the first time in maybe a month? I had just done grocery pick up.

I did my Valentine mani.

I roasted vegetables that were about the go bad and made a cauliflower rice, chicken, roasted vegetable bowl with a bit of mozzarella cheese. Yum! It turned out great. I am really trying to do better with using up food and not tossing it.

Later in the afternoon, I visited a little boutique and added to my fancy cocktail earring collection. This is what I do; I go a little bit overboard. I can’t help myself. Now I have tequila, rose, prosecco, and whatever these white bottles are on the left. Do you all ever get obsessions like this? They had White Claw, mojitos, and vodka, too. No, I am done. I think. Invite me out for a cocktail and I will wear the drink of choice, k?

We went out to eat with our friends at Harry’s and the UK game was on.

I tried their grapefruit sangria and it was amazing!

Gotta love their bread and butter!

My friend and I split the chicken teriyaki bowl and I can’t wait to order this again.

And, some sushi!

It was nice to get out and see some friends because it had been awhile.

Sunday morning I slept in a bit and then started reading this…

Kristen, I apologize, this Fairlife is sooooo good! I am trying to go more natural with my foods (and replace Premier for this) and this tastes like a melted Wendy’s Frosty. I want to try their vanilla now.

I made myself a Spanish omelette/frittata for breakfast.

I’m really into marinating lately. I have a sundried tomato chicken pasta planned for this week and I used the oil from this along with some olive oil to marinate my chicken. Warning: raw chicken photo ahead…

I will be sure to let you know if it turns out. My crochet Target sweater order was cancelled! It said it was out of stock. Why did they promise it, then?

So, to get back at Target I went there.

These two teas were recommended. The left is for evening wind down and it is caffeine free and the right is soooo good. I have had it before. It does have caffeine so that might be a late morning or afternoon tea for me.

Shout out to Tom for doing our taxes every year… but he says we may hire a professional this year?

And, he fixed a problem with my car. I was so stressed out about getting the car to the shop and being without a car (I have had lots of car issues in the last year) and he went to the auto parts store and spent $20 and a couple of hours and did it himself.

For Sunday lunch, I used the rest of the roasted vegetables for a roasted Greek bowl. It’s really good this way, too!

This will be a busy week!

I can’t remember the last time I worked at school for five days in a row. I will be exhausted after this week I’m sure, but the students need the continuity, as do I. We are expecting milder temps and no chances of snow.

What about you? Highlights of the weekend? Are you over winter, too? Are you ready for a 5 day week?

Amy

Friday, February 4, 2022

Happy Friday to you! It’s time to link up with Andrea and Erica!

Here are some things that I would call favorites this week…

I received In Style and Real Simple in the mail and I am saving them for this weekend. A fresh magazine to get me pumped for the next month is still a favorite.

My most recent home glitter mani with OPI Strawberry Margarita (two coats) and OPI Cheers to the New Year (two coats) with an Orly top coat is another favorite.

Erica has used Thrive Causemetics mascara and she asked if I wanted to order one, too, to save money on shipping. It is amazing! I really like it! Now I am curious about their other products.

Tuesday was really nice and we walked after school. Our new track is really cushioney and it was nice to debrief our day while getting some exercise.

Tom liked my Spanish cauliflower rice! I added some tomato paste, garlic, lime juice, and cilantro to the frozen rice and then made burrito bowls one night for dinner.

Erica made the stuffed acorn squash again!

I made Shay’s margarita soup one night and Tom had a grilled cheese with his. You all need to make this! I only put in a tiny bit of Sprite because I didn’t have diet and didn’t want too much sugar. The creamed corn and the lime juice make this a little different than your average tortilla soup. Also, I cooked my chicken in the crockpot with chicken broth to create a rotisserie chicken and it was amazing. Oh, I also added chicken broth to the soup. I can never leave a recipe alone! Erica and I had it for lunch the next day, too, and it is very low in WW points.

Mason sent me this one day and it warmed my heart! I really try not to “bug” them or text them too much. It is special when they text me first!

Did you read my Spring Trends post? Y’all, I could not help it! Crochet is one of the trends I said I wanted to try. This is on its way to me! It is Target, so not too expensive, but pretty expensive for Target. And, it is a juniors brand so I ordered it in the biggest size possible.

I will let you know what I think and if I decide to keep it. I know it’s controversial and looks like grandma’s throw. But, I dress for me!

I am working on a small Valentine’s bag for Jack and Mason.

I found these at Dollar Tree – bandaids and handwarmers for walking to class.

They love sour candy.

I will add some more things once I get out to a store.

I also am thinking of ways to show love this month. I made this little spread for Tom when he got home from work. He loves this candy and I picked it up.

Yesterday we had a virtual day. I actually like having one every now and then. It is really nice not to get out in the winter and not to have to make the day up at the end of the year.

I enjoyed my Valentine’s mantel while teaching from home.

We were at home because of an impending ice storm so I ran into the wine shop and picked up Chalkboard wine for after school – not during!

Ha!

I need show and movie recommendations!

I recommend Younger, Promised Land, and The Woman in the House across the Street from the Girls in the Window. All three of those helped entertain me last week! I am still watching Younger and anxiously awaiting a new episode of Promised Land.

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

Amy

Thursday, February 3, 2022

It is already time to link up again for Fashion Files with Jill and Kellyann! If you are new around here I spend my days as a high school Spanish teacher in Kentucky.

I don’t have much for you this week because Covid knocked on my door. I tested positive a week ago yesterday and stayed home from school Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (I did teach online from home these days but I didn’t worry about my clothes), and of course, I stayed home Saturday, too. Sunday, I tested negative and did get out finally but I didn’t get an outfit photo. I got the booster in December so I am fully vaccinated and it was just like a little cold for me. The worst part was the isolation and the fear of spreading it to others.

So, Monday I was excited to get back to school! I wore my Amazon sweater, Target jeans, and Amazon sneakers. I didn’t get too hot in this sweater (the heat is pretty powerful in my classroom) and I will not wear anything even remotely itchy. This passed the test and ran true to size for me.

I kinda had a goal this week to wear all of my recent Amazon purchases. I wanted to return anything that just wouldn’t work when I got dressed in the morning.

Tuesday I wore my new Amazon skirt. It is really long on me and the waist is not too flattering on me with this combo, but I plan to try it another way. I also may take it to my tailor to hem. The skirt has pockets and it is decent quality. This ran true to size.

And, yesterday I wore my new Amazon puffy sleeve tee. I sized up one to two sizes in this. I haven’t washed it yet, but as it is true t-shirt material I expect it could shrink a bit. You can’t beat this price for the quality and I really think I may get black and white for spring. I really like everything I have gotten from the Amazon Essentials brand.

Like many of you, I have a love/hate relationship with Amazon for clothes. I have found that I need to spend a bit more to get the quality I want. I also really like to take certain bloggers’ recommendations because Amazon is so overwhelming. And, I have also learned that I must return anything that I have any doubts about. I just can’t quit you, Amazon. You make it so tempting and easy!

I have been a bit discouraged lately in my health journey. It is such a slow process. But, every now and then I see my progress and remember how far I’ve come. I found this photo in my camera roll from 2018.

I also know that I have made progress inside that cannot be seen in a photo.

What have you been wearing lately? Favorite outfit from above?

Thanks for stopping by!

Amy

Wednesday, February 2, 2022

Well, yesterday gave me a taste of spring weather. It hit 60 degrees here! Erica and I walked on the track while the track team was practicing. We could also see the baseball team practicing. It felt like spring! But, alas, we do have a winter weather advisory coming tomorrow. It’s too early anyway. February is still winter.

Also, today is Groundhog Day! Will he see his shadow? Ha!

I am sure you can find so many different lists with so many different trends, but here are some I found that I will briefly talk about.

Are you trendy? I still like to study trends and try some out. Why not?

mini skirts – I think the best skirt length for me is knee length and I do have a jean mini skirt. Now, I’m not too comfortable going too mini.

gingham – love it! I could totally go for a gingham blouse.

seersucker – love it! I’m kinda in the south so we see quite a bit around here.

matching sets – I guess this means like a blazer and shorts or a sweatshirt and shorts. It looked really odd to me at first, but it is growing on me. I think I could try this if it were the right thing.

catsuits – no thank you. I need to use the restroom sometimes.

crochet – love it. I am a fan of the 70s vibe. I have seen some really cute light crochet sweaters that would go over a blouse or t-shirt.

fringe – depends on what it is. I have been known to love some fringe.

statement cutouts – this feels too much like the cold shoulder trend which was odd in my opinion. I’m not going to say never, but I will be cautious about this one for myself.

shrug sweaters – ummm, this feels very Clueless or Friends era. I guess I would have to see the modern iteration of this trend.

white– yes! I love white! But, white does not love me. I always spill something.

bras as tops – ummmm, no thank you. A bra is a bra and a top is a top.

What trends are you excited to try?

Amy

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

It is time to link up with Tanya and many more to share what we bought from Amazon in January.

I bought these glasses and I really like them and they hold a ton! Anyone watched this yet? I love how Kristen Bell pours her wine. No, I do not do the same! I think there are some less pricey versions of this style.

This was a happy accident. I really like the new to me Soothe & Sleep.

Have you heard hot rollers are back? I just donated a set of very large rollers. I wanted a variety of sizes so I got this set. I don’t love the clips to hold them on and I don’t love the design to be honest. I probably should have spent out a bit more, but I picked a cheaper option.

Big, Texas hair, anyone?

Yeah, I’m not so sure.

Now, I have not styled this yet so it may go back… It is total t-shirt material so I sized up. It is really long, but I will probably tuck it.

And, same with the skirt above – I haven’t styled it yet and if it doesn’t work I will send it back.

I love this sweater! I have worn it maybe 3 times already! I sometimes think Amazon doesn’t use the real photo because I can’t see how this would ever be off the shoulder and I don’t even think the neckline is the same?

And, I wore this to school yesterday and I really like it.

Just so you know, I am very, very picky about materials and I won’t wear something that is even remotely scratchy.

Also, I love the sneakers!

Now, the next products you can find on Amazon, but I bought them in the stores.

Now, please don’t take my feminist card away, but I have information that I feel I need to share. Do not waste your money on Scrub Mommy. Scrub Daddy is way better.

I gave Mommy a chance but I recently went back to Daddy.

This is a great lip product! I learned about it from Polka Dotty Place on Instagram. It feels amazing! It is called Neutrogena Moisture Smooth Color Stick.

I use the bottom first – a pencil on one end and then a little sponge brush on the other then follow it up with the top one. Great products and won’t break the bank.

What has the blue van been bringing to your house lately? Why did that sound creepy?

Amy