The Seventies

Oh the inspiration of the seventies. Here are some more house pictures I promised, but you'll have to come back for the after pictures. While you wait in anticipation, think about what you would do with such a kitchen as this and post a comment. I would love to hear your thoughts. The after pictures are coming I assure you.

A Carrot Addiction?

Generally, when I crave something it's along the lines of say chocolate, pastry, a big cheeseburger... but lately I've been craving and eating carrot casserole like it's nobody's business. Here's the recipe and a picture of the dish after day 3 of eating the leftovers.

Carrot Casserole

4 cups carrots sliced (a 2 lb. bag is 4,3/4 cup)
1 cup mayo
3 Tbs horseradish (my hubby prefers mustard here)
melted butter
ritz or saltine crackers

Cook carrots, mix with mayo and horseradish, put in greased casserole dish and top with crackers mixed with melted butter. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Yum.


This was originally introduced to me as part of a meal delivered to me after I had Zane. Thanks, Mary, it's a keeper.

Evidence

I'm a pretty neat person. There's a place for everything and everything is in its place in my house. At least for the most part, but I would not give up for anything the little signs that there is someone in the house who can't even say the word, "neat".

A Work In Progress

A few of my friends that don't live near me have been wondering what my house looks like, how I decorate, what styles I like, etc. All the before and after pictures would be too much for one post so I'll give a little taste here and there of what my humble abode is like. Plus, I don't have all the "after" pictures taken at the moment. So I'll start with the curb side view to which there will not be an after picture for who knows how long because.... well, that would be a whole other post entitled Excuses.

We have cut off a lot of the lower branches on the two pine trees in front so you can actually see the house now. There's a big back yard and a lot of work to do so maybe I'll still be doing this blog when I have an after picture and you can see it.

Now here is an actual before...

And after of the bathroom. It's tiny so this is the best way I could get a view of most of the room.

Sour Cream Spice Cake

Yum. I made this yesterday and am enjoying the fruits of my labor right now. It's a Betty Crocker recipe but I'll share it the way I did it. I omitted some non-essentials. Also, I halfed the recipe and baked it in a loaf pan because I only had a half cup of sour cream. Enjoy.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1,1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1,1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 large eggs

1. Heat oven to 350. Grease 13x9x2 pan with shortening.
2. Beat all ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on high speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan.
3. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

It's a Hard Knock Life

I use this title for my post because I've been listening to this lately. And when your hubby has had a long hard day on his feet, the items pictured above can make it not such a hard knock day. A wash cloth, towel, some liquid soap, foot creme, a candle, a bucket (not pictured) and a willing spirit (also not pictured) is all it takes to get out all the tension in his feet. Plus, chances are if he's been working hard on his feet all day, you'll enjoy the smell a lot better if you do this for him. See, everybody wins!

Librarian Perks

As I was talking to my brother-in-law about the perks of working at a clothing store, he kind of laughed at my feeble attempts at saying that free books and getting paid slightly above minimum wage to be surrounded by books, books, and more books could actually be justified as perks. Mainly because it's only a slight step up from what anybody using the library can take advantage of. Well, to add to my list of perks, I do not get charged with late fees, I can check out more than the 20 items allowed to "regular" patrons, and I can order more than 4 books at a time from other libraries in our system. What a life!


As it stands I have 47 items checked out which includes exercise dvds, a few episodes of the second season of The Office, board books for Zane, books on fig trees that my husband is studying, Anna Karenina, and these four beauties-

Also, I can suggest books for purchase and I'm in love with the Discover America State by State series from this publisher. Check it out.