What to do... what to do...

I am on break from school until January 3rd... Seriously... I have so much time to myself it's not funny. So, I'm left wondering what to do with all my "free" time... Sure, I COULD work on those projects that I NEVER have time for (like organizing my spare room/office) but where's the fun in that?

I have something on my agenda for the next few days at least... I am going to attempt to make some apple/pear butter. Why? Because I have a crap ton of apples and pears, some of which I've been receiving in my weekly produce box, and some of which were given to me for Christmas. I know, it is sacreligious to even think about cooking a Harry & David pear, but I don't care... I'd rather puree it into pear butter than watch it go to waste on my counter because I can't eat them fast enough.

I'm not sure if I'm going to start this project tonight or tomorrow, but sometime soon. Maybe I'll clean out my kitchen tonight and make it tomorrow. I'll have to document the process, though... You know, for posterity :)

Insomnia, my (unfortunately) constant friend...

When Aaron is home, I fall asleep early in the evening (usually between 10:00 and 11:00 PM). However, the last time he was home, he decided that he needed to wake me up because I was snoring (apparently, a lot). What he didn't know at the time is that it usually takes me a while to fall back to sleep, especially when I'm woken up in a way that is disorienting... He felt bad for disrupting my sleep pattern. I forgive him (now... I wanted to gouge his eyes out that last week he was home, but we'll just chalk that up to the sleep-deprived monster that lives in my skull and gets bitchy at times like this)...

When he is gone, I have insomnia... bad... I go HOURS and HOURS, tossing and turning in bed, trying to fall asleep. This is one aspect of life that I am looking forward to going away when he transfers back to Juneau for work in the spring (and will thus be home every night). I'm lucky if I get 5 straight hours of sleep at night...

Because of my disrupted sleep pattern at the end of his last shift home, my usual insomnia and the constant waking up at night several time pattern merged into one really bad night of sleep (over several nights, let's just be clear). I would fall asleep later, around midnight or 1:00 AM and then proceed to wake up again about every hour or two... sigh... I'm just now getting back into a pattern where I can sleep uninterrupted (and actually feel rested). Until yesterday...

I had a migraine brewing for most of yesterday and it got to a point where I had to close my eyes for the pain of it all. I ended up sleeping for about 4 hours straight, and when I woke up, I was EXTREMELY disoriented (thought it was 10:30 PM on Monday and that I missed work entirely, when it was actually 7:30 on Sunday), but my migraine had receded enough that Excedrin was able to chase the rest of it away. Relief... Until later that night when I couldn't sleep... Until about 4 AM... This morning... And I had to get up at 7:00 AM to go to work...

So, thanks to my insomnia, I HAD to go get a latte (and resist the urge to add multiple shots of espresso to the already spiked brew, in case it made me sick)... Pray that I make it through the day...

Contacts... Round 2

A couple of year ago, I tried contacts for the first time... Within a month (or maybe 2), I had stopped wearing them every day and only wore them when I felt like it. Primarily, because my eye doctor insisted (at the time) that extended wear contacts were not available for people with astigmatism and that my best option were the daily wears... Ok... Well, I tried. I really did. When you aren't used to wearing contacts, your eyes protest for a while, but after a few hours (sometimes, all day), you eyes seem to get used to the invasion and you are at peace again... Usually this would happen about the same time that I had to take them out every night... It got to where it was a "chore" to put in and take out my contacts every day, so I saved them for special occasions (like when we would fly the Apache to Washington and I needed sunglasses, and my transistion-lenses on my glasses don't change when I'm inside the plane - or car for that matter). I was also extremely afraid of falling asleep in the dailies, because the doctor said I couldn't sleep in them... A "rule-follower" such as myself gets anxious when given those kinds of instructions - What could happen? Would it permanently fuse to my eyeball and I'd never get it off? (in hindsight, I guess I could have ASKED these questions to aleviate my anxiety, but it was easier for me just to not wear them)

So, it's been a while since I've been back in to see the eye doctor. This time, there is a new doctor in the clinic and I happened to get her. I told her about my issues with the daily wear contacts and asked if there is an extended wear option available. There is! And they had my prescription on hand in the extended wears (well, they had my right eye on-hand, my left eye prescription is close to the one they gave me but not spot on, so they have to special order that one for me). The doctor promptly put the lenses on my eyeballs and told me to leave them in for 1-2 weeks, at which time she will re-evaluate my progress with the lenses. Awesome :)

This, however, left me with a few minor issues. (1) I hadn't planned on actually WEARING contacts today, so I didn't have my case for my glasses with me. Luckily, they gave me one of their spare cases so I wouldn't mangle my glasses in my purse. (2) My re-wetting drops that I left in my desk drawer expired in 2009... Luckily, the convenience store I walked to for lunch had some. Not the brand I'm used to (but, let's face it, I'm not used to the one in my desk anymore either).

After the 10 days is up (when my next appointment is), I will decide if I will just get the contacts or if I'll stay with my glasses (my insurance will only cover one or the other)... In the mean time, does anyone have any good remedies for dark undereye circles? My glasses camoflage mine pretty well, but I lost that camoflage today...

Amazing Pumple Pie Recipe

So, my mom's version of this pie is extremely easy... You take a deep dish pie pan and put a pie crust in it. Take a can of apple pie filling and layer it in the bottom. Top it off with pumpkin pie filling and bake like a pumpkin pie. Easy, right? I grew up on this recipe and it is quite good.

My version is a little more complicated, but the texture is much improved by making the filling from scratch. I say "make the filling from scratch" because I can't make pie crust to save my life, so I use Pillsbury's prepared pie crust, or Marie Calendar's pie crust (this one comes with the pie pan and is found in the freezer section). If you have a favorite pie crust recipe and have the talent for making it from scratch, feel free to do so. Another alteration I made to the recipe is to make it egg-free because of my egg allergy. I can eat some baked goods that include eggs (cakes, cookies, etc), but pretty much anything that is custard-based causes me to itch.

So, to make everything from scratch, it takes several hours (I won't lie to you). You must start with the pumpkin. I used The Pioneer Woman's recipe for Pumpkin Puree. The only deviation I made to it was to use my stick blender to puree the pumpkin after it was roasted (tried mashing it first, but the texture was too chunky). The good thing about this website is the exact step-by-step instructions that she gives (and the permission not to be thorough). It also comes with recipes for Roasted Pumpkins Seeds (Pepitas) and awesome Pumpkin Butter (another post for another time).

Once the pumpkin puree was prepared (and set aside to drain as it was rather moist), I started on the apples. The canned apples are rather slimy, but they are pre-cooked, which helps the texture of the pie. I found a recipe for a pre-cooked apple pie filling in my Joy of Cooking cookbook, but it needs some modifications before I can use it in the pie (primarily, a reduction in quantities). So, here's what I do for one pie:

• Peel, core, and chop 4 apples (Braeburn, Fuji, or a mix of the two)

• Saute the apples in 2 Tbsp. butter for about 4 minutes.

• Add about 1/4 cup of brown sugar and about 1/4 tsp. of Pumpkin Pie Spice, and a dash of salt.

• Continue cooking the apples until the sauce thickens, then remove from the heat and spread the apples in a thin layer on a baking sheet (or glass cake pan) to cool.

While the apples cool, the pumpkin pie filling can be prepared with the drained pumpkin puree. I found a recipe for an egg-less pumpkin pie filling Cooks.com.  The comments on this recipe claim that it makes a very liquidy filling batter, but I found that it was about the same as when I make pumpkin pie the old way. I followed this recipe pretty closely, but I did use lactose-free milk, pumpkin pie spice instead of cinnamon, and vanilla instead of lemon extract.

To make the pie, layer apples (without a lot of the sauce from the apples) in the bottom of the pie pan. Top off the pie with the pumpkin pie filling. IMPORTANT - Put the pie pan on a baking sheet before baking - the apples will bubble up and it will make a mess of your oven if you skip this step. Bake the pie according to the pumpkin pie recipe. When done, let cool.

I make the pie the day before I want to eat it, but this is primarily because I don't have time to make it on the day I make a big feast. It doesn't need to be refrigerated (at least, my family has never refrigerated the pie, we just let it sit on the counter with a clean cloth over top.. I've never gotten sick, but if you worry about it, feel free to refrigerate it)

Serve with your favorite whipped topping :) In my experience, those that do not like apple pie (like myself) and those that do not like pumpkin pie (like Aaron) enjoy the combo in this pie. And it does make a difference to make it from scratch. You can make a very good pie by using canned pumpkin and canned apple, but the texture and flavor of ingredients from scratch make the pie PHENOMENAL! Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture of the pie, but I will when I make it again for Christmas :)

Some success, some failure

So, I'm a little late in writing this blog post, but I'm in "whatever" mode at the moment... Not to be rude, just realistic (I'm tired, cranky, and overworked)...
Thanksgiving Dinner had some levels of success and some (epic) failures... I will post the recipes that were flat out AWESOME in a later post (read: I need to go home and find where I put the recipes), but I wanted to mention what went wrong...

The worst thing that everyone dreads while cooking any poultry happened - my turkey was still pretty raw (even after I double-checked the temperature with a thermometer... which shall be promptly replaced before I make another turkey). I put the turkey back in the oven. It took an additional 3 hours to cook... Not sure that my oven is working properly either... Hmmm... After it was (thoroughly) cooked, it was AWESOME because of the brining and seasonings, so I guess this one wasn't SO bad after all, we just didn't get to eat it FOR Thanksgiving Dinner...

I tried making homemade rolls... they sucked... I'm going to stick to Rhodes Freezer Rolls from now on... I know I can't mess those up...

Brussels sprouts weren't good either... I had one, Aaron "tasted" one (spit it out, so I'm not saying he "ate" it), and our guest abstained... Oh well, at least I used them in the meal...

Everything else came out good. The boys wouldn't stop talking about the stuffing/dressing. The pie was the best I have ever made - and that is saying something! I will definitely post the process at a later date (a combination of several recipes that is quite time consuming, but the results are SO WORTH IT).

Can't mess up potatoes and gravy... The gravy was good enough to make my rock-like dinner rolls somewhat edible (but I was the only one "brave" enough to try them).

I think I'm going to make Roast Beef for Christmas dinner... I KNOW I won't mess that up!

A rare treat!

As any pilot's wife will tell you, holidays spent with pilots are few and far between. I do have to say that, over the almost 12 years that Aaron and I have been married, we have spent most of the holidays together. The last few years, however, have quickly been lumped into the "missing pilot" file. His schedule has been one where he missed pretty much every holiday for the last couple of years. This year, he is home for Thanksgiving and will be home for Christmas! What can I say, I'm feeling rather spoiled at the moment.

So, since we aren't moving (like we have over past Thanksgiving holidays) and he is home, I'm going "all-out" for Thanksgiving dinner. We have invited some stranded pilots that live in the area (can't make it back home for T-giving) and I am making a feast! This is not without its challenges, however.... Do you know how many years it has been since I have made a full turkey? Um, let's see.... I think it has been at least a decade, give or take a year or two... In fact, the last time I remember roasting a full bird was the first Thanksgiving we spent in our house when we were first married. If I remember right, I thought it was too much work for just two people to eat, so I decided not to do it anymore... Every Thanksgiving since then has been spent either moving, apart, or at someone else's house. If I made anything at all, it was a Jenny-O Turkey Loaf and a box of Stove-Top.

Anyway, here is my plan for Thanksgiving:

Apple-Brined Turkey (that I picked up today at the store for about $10 - would have been $35, but they were running a special - my original dinner plan involved a Brined Turkey Breast, not a whole bird... I figure that I can use the leftovers during the week)

Sausage Stuffing/Dressing (Aaron calls it "stuffing," but since I won't actually be stuffing the bird with it, it is technically "dressing")

Mashed Potatoes & Gravy (it is not Thanksgiving in my house without it!)

Asparagus w/ Bacon-Gouda Sauce (I haven't decided if I'm going to grill them or steam them... I guess I'll make that decision on Thursday based on the availability of my broiler)

Grilled Brussels Sprouts (only because I'm getting these in my produce box this week... they are a last minute addition to my menu and the first time I will be using a recipe to grill them... I hope they are tasty)


Cranberry Sauce (the jellied kind - Aaron's favorite)

Fresh Rolls w/ Sweet Cream Butter

Pumple Pie ("Pumpkin/Apple Pie" - old family recipe with a few modifications to accommodate my egg allergy and using REAL PUMPKINS, which I ordered, thinking I wouldn't find a good egg-free pumpkin pie recipe so I was going to make a Pumpkin-Apple Crisp so I could still get my favorite combo for dessert)

That's it, so far... But I keep adding to the menu... Maybe, if I get ambitious enough, I may take pictures of the meal before it is devoured... And since it is such a "special" occasion for me, I might even dress up a little... But, then again, with such an ambitious menu, maybe not...

How to deal with your pilot...

When your pilot is away for some time (like mine is for two-weeks at a time), integrating him into the daily household routine is difficult, usually causing arguments and nastiness the longer he is home. Looking at both sides of the issue:

The person who is home all the time is used to doing things one way and she has to alter her routine to fit the pilot back into it. When the pilot comes home, the person who is always home is looking for some help and understanding after dealing with all of the household issues that came up while he was gone and her own professional responsibilities. What she usually gets is frustration and more stress.

The pilot comes home after working long, stressful shifts and is looking for a break. He takes his time, relaxing and focusing on his projects that have been sitting for two weeks. He does not appreciate the nagging wife. He feels unwelcome at times in his own home.

So, this seems like a big problem, doesn't it... How do these two people have their individual needs met, while making sure that the other person is seen to as well? What is the correct answer? Is there a correct answer? 

How do dogs fit in with homework?

 

Like this, apparently...

And so it begins...

School started for me again yesterday... Already, I have one assignment completed and I have started my outline for my paper due this week... Hopefully, I will be able to keep it up!

On the plus side, I woke up to a blue-sky morning today. I haven't seen blue sky for several weeks. It is cool outside, so it is a nice, cool, autumn day. The sunshine is nice, though. It's amazing what a little sunshine will do for your mood.

A bad case of the "What Ifs"

I have taken my time with this topic, but I feel I must share it with other pilot wives. It is something that most (if not all) of us will need to handle at some point in time.

As the wife of a pilot, different scenarios are always in the back of my mind. I tend to let everyday life distract me from these thoughts, but sometimes, everyday life brings them forward...

A good friend of my husband died the other day as the result of a mid air collision. Due to the circumstances surrounding the crash, Aaron was the second person on site and identified the airplane as the one his friend was flying that day. He is, understandably, upset.

As a wife, I was grateful that he wasn't involved and that he is OK. As a wife, I suffer because I can't be with him to comfort him. All I can do is listen over the phone as I hear him grieve for his friend. I can offer comfort through my words as he deals with the helplessness he feels about being on scene and not being able to do anything to help his friend or the other pilot involved. I cry with him because of the personal relationship we had with his friend...

As a wife, I also feel my own helplessness about the situation. Helplessness that the only thing I can do is talk on the phone when all I want to do is hold him close. The nagging thoughts in the back of my head are screaming "What If?" I know these thoughts are not worthwhile, but after an incident such as this, it is hard to turn that voice off...

Cutbacks...

Cutbacks in flight hours means cutbacks in my monthly budget... I am getting creative to deal with it, which isn't easy when you are a pilot wife with no children. It is easier to go out to eat a single meal rather than prepare a bunch of food that rots in the fridge/freezer before you get a chance to eat it. It is not, however, less expensive than buying ingredients and making it yourself (I haven't calculated the cost of the ruined food, so I may be wrong there). So, the question is - how do I feed myself individual meals (that meet my unique eating requirements) without anything going to waste?

I came across the solution while reading my Rachael Ray magazine this month (before the dog peed on it, but that is another story)... There is an article in there inspired by her recent make-ahead meals that prepares individual ingredients that are frozen in individual quantities... This got me thinking.

If I can buy large quantities of chicken, beef, and pork when it goes on sale, then I can roast them in my favorite method, shred, and freeze the meat in Ziploc baggies in 1 cup portions. I can also make brown rice ahead of time and freeze the same way. Combining this method with other ingredients from my pantry and organic produce delivery, I should be able to feed myself (and Aaron when he is home) and save money in the process. I can use the meat to make soup as I want it (in the quantity that I want, rather than a large pot that I won't finish), or make enchilada/burritos/tacos, or toss with pasta or risotto, or make sandwiches... You can see where I'm going with this! So much versatility, with weekend efforts.

If you are a member of the Pilot Wives Club, I'll add my recipes there (along with some variations, for those with different tastes). I'll also add them to my other blog for my own record or to satisfy your curiosity...

I don't know why I didn't think of this before!

I see the light...

... at the end of the tunnel! I have less than 3 weeks to go before I get my Associate Degree! I am excited, and exhausted at the same time...

The last few weeks of my final class (Algebra) are very complex and time consuming calculations. I've always been able to process the equations and such, so they are not really hard, but it can take 15 minutes to work through a complicated equation... Most of the time, when I get an answer wrong, it is because I didn't enter the answer in the EXACT way it wants it... Like, this evening... I spent 30 minutes working a problem and getting frustrated when the answer I came up with wasn't correct... After working through the tutorial for the problem, I found out that I DID have the answer correct, but it was missing a comma... A FREAKING COMMA!!! Seriously? And, once I found out that the problem I worked was correct, the program gave me a different problem to work in order to get credit for it... I had to spend another 10 minutes solving a new problem... (sigh)... I'll be so happy when this class is done.

I thought that 4 hours would be PLENTY of time to get my assignment completed and turned in on time, but it wasn't... It was turned in 15 minutes late, which is an automatic 10% reduction in my grade.

Day by day...

That is the motto of my life right now... Just taking one day at a time. Every day is busy and stressful and eventful, especially this evening. But, I'll start by recapping the last few months since I haven't posted anything since June...

In July, we went to the Arlington Fly-in again. It was eventful, kind of like last year, but all the excitement happened at the beginning of the trip, as opposed to the end of the trip. The weather was crap when we flew down there. We filed IFR all the way, but arrived after the TFR went in to effect... Which was funny in and of itself... The weather was so bad that they couldn't have the airshow that afternoon, which is what the TFR was for. No one thought to cancel the TFR and the controllers in the area wouldn't clear us to land in Arlington because the airport was "closed"... So, we diverted to Skagit to wait out the TFR. Oddly enough, when we had problems with our door last year, we landed in Skagit to meet up with another Apache owner to get it repaired. Anyway, by the time the TFR expired, the weather was good enough to get to Arlington VFR, so we scooted on over there to set up camp.

The next morning, we woke up early to the sound of an intense downpour... Just awesome! The door on the plane doesn't seal completely at the top of the door when it is locked from the outside. There is a latch on the inside that seals the top of the door while in flight... This had Aaron crawling through the baggage door at 6:00 AM to flip the latch on the door to keep the plane from flooding... Then the rain stopped and we thought the coast was clear. We headed to the showers and started cooking breakfast... Part way through cooking bacon, it started downpouring again! Seriously? Yep... Now, I had purchased a shelter to sit in for shade and protection from the rain and to keep our camp kitchen while at Arlington... I thought that it would be fine.... Nope! The sides are mesh for bugs... Sideways downpour rain cuts through it... I'm sure it was quite comical to anyone passing (but no one did due to the storm) to see us huddled in a 3 sq ft area in the very center of the shelter trying to eat bacon without getting drenched... It was raining so hard that we couldn't even make it back to the tent! (Next time we try to use the shelter, I'm going to bring some extra tarps or sheets or something to tie to the sides for rain protection...)

Luckily, the rain stopped and didn't come back the rest of the time we were there. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit this year, getting to meet up with my aunt and uncle that live near there. We also got to eat funnel cake (missing from the experience last year) and play at the carnival (a new installment this year, probably won't be there again). We got to tour a DC-2 and met Mr. Paul Hajduk, the man who flew the glider during the airshow (amazing performance and he and his wife are super nice!). All-in-all, it was a good trip.

So, that was my summer vacation/weekend... Ever since I got back home, it's been "business as usual"... Busy at work, busy at home, busy at school... Busy, busy, busy....

One little bit of excitement (and not the good kind) happened this evening... Miss Lijha decided to ignore the command to go to the house (after a car ride) and took off after another dog on the other side of the highway that we live on... during a moderately heavy traffic time... She ignored my recall commands and my heart stopped... Thankfully, the dog she was chasing after was accompanied by a jogger, who recognized my frantic attempts to get a hold of Lijha (including dropping my groceries, purse, & keys and taking off through a drainage ditch as a direct line to the dang dog) and held her until I could catch up... Lijha got in LOTS of trouble and I was so upset by the ordeal, I put her in her kennel so I wouldn't beat her... I could tell I was getting that upset... Long story short? Lijha's off-leash privledges have been revoked and we are stepping up/revamping our recall training with Lijha... Thank goodness she didn't get hit by a car, but I could have killed her myself! (hindsight - when I noticed the dog go past the house, I should have taken the groceries into the house and grabbed her leash before I let her out of the car... lesson learned!)

Today was Aaron's birthday, which he got to spend in Bethel surrounded by LOTS of drama... I won't go into detail in this forum (at this point, but the story may come later) but it wasn't a GREAT day for him... He'll be home in a week, so we'll celebrate his birthday then.

If I end up not posting for a while, you will know why... I'm a busy girl :)

Planning...

It is almost time for our annual trip with the airplane. That's right, folks... We are going to the Arlington Fly-in again this year. It should be a lot of fun...

So, we have a few days this month to get everything ready while Aaron is home. Then, we need to solve the problem of what to do with our fur-kids. Unfortunately, we cannot take them with us unless we get a campsite away from the airplane and we kennel them over there... Not fun for the puppies. Especially since Aaron LOVES to go from plane to plane and drool. Yep, he's a typical pilot who can be lost for hours in a sea of aircraft. Last year, we had friend that were here and they house-sat for us and took care of Noni. They live in Mississippi now. Our options at this point are to board them, but we'll be gone for about 5 days so it will not be cheap...

In the mean time, we'll be getting the camping gear dusted off and plan our shopping list. I can't wait. I really enjoyed myself last time, mostly because I got to sit by the plane as much as I wanted, didn't get dragged around the whole site, and got to take naps when I wanted... It was AWESOME! This year, I'll be representing the Pilot Wives Club as well, so hopefully I see some other members there. Less than a month to go! Sweet!

My Girls (in a rare moment)

When is a King Size not really a King Size?

When you have a German Shepherd...

Aaron lucked out in getting us a king-sized bed when we moved to Hawaii. He got one cheaper than the queens that were on sale, so he got it... We vowed never to go back to a Queen Size...

When it was just the two of us and Noni, it was perfect. But, then, Noni is small. There was always plenty of room, with Noni curling up in some random corner of the bed. Ah... those were the days...

Now, with Lijha, there is no more room at the inn... Sure, we all fit on the bed, but not comfortably. Realistically, there can only be 2 large bodies and one small body on the bed at any given time for anyone to be comfortable. I have woken up in pain every morning this past week... This morning was worse than the others... Twice this week, I swear she was trying to push me out of bed... She knows just how to work it too... She'll sleep on the floor in front of the door until we go to sleep... Then she inserts herself between us and pushes against one or the other until she is taking up half the bed... Of course, we don't notice until we wake up just what positions she has put us in...

I wonder if we can purchase anything larger than a King... Like, maybe an entire padded room for the times when all four of us are home... Yeah, that could work!

Have you ever hit the wall?

It's funny how we tend to block out the "bad" times in our lives? Like, how we block out the pain of childbirth after we hold our children for the first time (or so I hear, I've never actually had that experience) or we forget how bad puppies were after they hit adulthood? Or how the really stressful and exhausting time at work that comes around the same time every year really wipes you out? Accountants know what I'm talking about... We are currently in the "busy" time of work at the moment and I come home exhausted every night. Sitting and staring at a computer screen for 8+ hours a day straight is extremely fatiguing... So much so that I could not keep my eyes open when I got home yesterday. I went straight to bed and took a 2 hour nap. Woke up for dinner and time with the hubby since he is home at the moment, then back to sleep for another 8. I am still tired today, but no where near as tired as I was yesterday. Yeah, I hit that wall hard!

Whistle Whining and Other Frustrations...

Three weeks ago, Lijha broke her outside toe on her back left leg. I know, it hurts... I know, you can't go run around like a freak right now... I know you want to go for a walk... I know you are frustrated... Please, for the love of God and for the sake of my sanity, find a different outlet for your frustrations... Whistle whining makes me want do things that are not acceptable in normal society...

Before she broke her foot, she would do the typical German Shepherd whistle whine at inopportune times... It made me want to say "If you keep whining, I'll give you something to whine about"...

And, no, I wasn't the one who broke her foot...

Common courtesy request: If you are sick, stay home... I don't need to be sick (again)... Just because you don't want to take a sick day, even when you accumulate 2 days a month, that doesn't mean that you should get everyone else sick. BTW, telling me that you are going to stay in your office to keep everyone else from getting sick doesn't mean squat when you have to pass by my desk to go to the bathroom or enter/exit the building (my desk is in the entrance to the building)... If you "can't" take a sick day because of your work load, that is when technology comes into play... Log in to GoToMyPC and transfer your desk phone to your cell - With everything in our office going paperless, problem solved.

When you stay home when sick, you give your body time to rest so you can get over the illness faster and you keep from contaminating your co-workers... Just FYI...

(cough, cough, sneeze, hack, snort) - Yeah, that's thanks to my lovely co-workers who don't want to take a sick day... Thanks guys... Just what a chronic bronchitis/asthma/allergy patient needs... I'm not feeling well, and I can't tell if it is because of everyone else or I'm having an asthma attack or if my bronchitis is coming back...

Too bad my boss won't let me work from home (apparently, my job doesn't allow me to work remotely)... I could isolate myself from all the other sickies and keep myself from getting it.

Remembering Grandma...

I have been busy today working on homework and cleaning my house and dealing with the vet (grrr...). I happened to look at my e-mail just a few minutes ago and I saw an email that made me cry. Not because of the content, it was a very simple e-mail that I get many of throughout the year. It was a birthday reminder that I have sent to me a week before a birthday so I will remember to send a card or something to someone (or at least call them). Today, I got the reminder for my Grandmother's birthday on May 1st. She passed away last year...

So, I sit here thinking about how she taught me to crochet and how to shuffle cards. I am remembering how she always let me have french toast for breakfast when I came to visit, and how with every dinner, she would steam a big bowl of broccoli just for me... Well, I tell myself it was just for me, but I had to share with everyone at the table. I look over at my couch and see my afghan that she made for me, with the words "I Love You" raised on the front... I remember so many great things about my Grandma and I miss her very much. I wish I could call her and tell her about my day like I used to. I know what she would tell me when I ask her about her day... She would say "Oh, I've just been here rocking my Samson and Delilah" (my aunt's dog and cat, respectively). My grandma loved to sit in her recliner with the dog and cat in her lap and look outside at the mountains while she rocked... I miss hearing her say that. I also miss her smell... You know, the smell that says "grandma"... Whenever she would come to visit my family growing up, she would sleep in my bed. I loved how my bed and pillows smelled like Grandma for weeks after she left. I'm sad that I'll never get to have that reminder again.

So, I'm going to have my little cry and remember my grandma...

Poor Lijha

Lijha got what Aaron calls "the zoomies" in the house a little before I was supposed to go pick him up from the airport. Basically, she went into "spaz mode" and frantically ran around the house. She slipped and hit her foot on something (not sure if it was the couch or the bookcase) then came back to lay down. She started whimpering and yelping like she hurt herself. I looked at her leg, felt all over it to see where she was hurt, and noticed that her outside toe on her back left leg was sticking out a bit. She started limping and that's when I decided I would take her to the vet.

But, I first had to go get Aaron. I wouldn't have enough time to go to the vet before I picked him up. So, I waited at the airport. I heard the plane land, then I heard the announcement on the loudspeakers that the flight had arrived. I started calling his cell phone and after a couple of disconnects (because it was off for the flight) he answered. I told him to come straight to the car and we would pick up his baggage later. We went straight to the vet where she was examined. After xrays were taken, it was clear that she broke her toe. The one that was sticking out to be precise. It was a very obvious break too. Poor baby. She is now in a splint and is hobbling everywhere. She has to go back every 10 days to get it checked out (and probably rebandaged). If she happens to chew on her bandages, she has to go back in and have them replaced. She will be in the splint for a month. She can't run, and if we take her for a walk, it must be short and we must protect her splint.

Hopefully, this will be her "no zoomies in the house" experience and she'll be calm when inside.

And, of course, this happens just as she was able to return to normal activity after her surgery last week. (sigh)

Updates...

With school and health issues, I haven't had much time to post anything new on my (main) blog. I finally got over my bronchitis, but it lead to allergy related asthma. My blood was tested for allergies and it was determined that I am allergic to eggs. So, now I am faced with having to alter my lifestyle. Since I have to do that to accomodate the egg allergy, I might as well get healthy while I'm at it.

If you haven't checked it out already through my links on Facebook, I have started a new blog to catalog my lifestyle change. I did it more for me, as a way to record what I like when I try something new, new or revised recipes, and my daily food/activity diary (posted weekly). If it helps anyone else out, then awesome!

You can find it here.

Please don't lump me in with everyone else...

I am so sick and tired of being labeled a racist just because I happen to disagree with a lot of the President's policies... Seriously... I don't care that our President is Black... I wouldn't care if he were purple or green... I don't like his policies. That doesn't make me a racist, that makes me a human being with her own opinion...

This rant brought to you by the NPR exec who labeled all Tea-Partiers as "racist"... Is the Tea Party free of racism? Probably not... I am not naive... I know there are racists within the Tea Party... Just like there are racists in any group of people... To label all people that think the same way regarding the policies of the government as racist is ignorant. It is called stereotyping, and stereotyping is wrong... It would be like saying that all people who drive a Ford are redneck hicks!

I am tired of the name calling... What are we, 7? Yeah? Well, you're a doodie-head!

The art of being lazy...

High stress loads during the week make me want to do nothing all weekend long. I just want to stay in bed and have no responsibilities...

However, the choice to be lazy on the weekend increases my stress load during the week, so it is a self-perpetuating cycle...

Too bad I won't get paid to sit around on my ass all day long and watch TV... I would much rather do that than study areas of the brain or do my laundry...

HA!!!!!

Today is day 2 of Aaron being home... And he got to experience the same frustration I have been dealing with entirely by myself for 2+ weeks! HA!!!

Today, while making both dogs' lunch (the proper serving of dog food for each, but topped with cottage cheese), he stepped back right into a puddle of pee... That's right, folks! Lijha peed on the floor without alerting! And he thought I was just not paying attention to the dog or had mistreated her in some way so that she "forgot" her training... I felt so vindicated! He was flabbergasted! He kept saying "but she's been a good dog all day?!?!"

That's what I've been dealing with, folks... It's never at a "good" time... I've always been in the middle of something (as in this case, we were just getting ready to feed the dogs their lunch) and don't really have time to thoroughly clean the floors every 2 hours...

I'm so glad it happened to him this time! HA HA HA!!!

Progress...

I have 5 more classes until I am done with my Associate Degree... I am scheduled to graduate on August 28th! Woo-hoo!

I also talked to one of my advisers at school to get my application in for my Bachelor's program. All looks well thus far. Classes for my Bachelor's program start in September, so I'll have a bit of a break after I'm done with my Associate Degree. It'll be a well-deserved break :)

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Let Me Go Outside...

I really really have to pee, so let me go outsi-ide...
If you don't I will go, right here on the floor...
Oops, too late, I just went, now I'll lick your face!
(did you have the Jingle Bells tune in your head while you read that? he he he)

Following the advice given on my last freakout post, I took a little bit of time this evening to make a "door bell" for Lijha to use to alert me to the fact that she needs to go outside...

She loves ringing it... It took once for her to "get it" that if she makes the bells ring, that I will let her outside... Let's hope this lasts and it is not just her excitement over the novelty of it.

Thank goodness we haven't put our Christmas stuff in the attic yet... I might have had to spend some money on jingle bells... Who stocks jingle bells in February?

House Training Hell...

Let me set the scene for you... I am trying to focus on my schoolwork because I am currently failing one of my classes... I also have finals this week that I HAVE to do well on... Aaron is at work... And Lijha is driving me INSANE!!!

I understand puppies don't have bladder control and everything, but I should be able to get this dog to alert (whine, scratch on the door, etc) to tell me she needs to pee. Seriously, she used to alert all the time (but looking back, that was when we were taking her out in the front yard and she liked to run around out there)... She no longer alerts, she just goes to the back door... and pees...

I have been keeping puppy pads back there to "train" her to use those if she is in the house (and to make it easier to clean it up). But I swear to god she won't use them just to annoy me. In the last 2 hours since I got home from work, I have let her out no less than 6 times... but she has still been eliminating at the back door... Not "ON" the puppy pad, but right next to it... This causes the pee to spread out under the plastic lining of the pad and it goes EVERYWHERE! After the third time of having to mop my floor tonight because of the mess, I was on the verge of tears! I don't have time for this! I have homework to do, I can't sit and watch EVERY SINGLE MINUTE OF THE DAMN DOG'S ACTIVITIES SO SHE DOESN'T PEE ON THE FLOOR!! I CAN'T TAKE HER OUTSIDE (IN THE FRONT) EVERY TIME SHE "ALERTS" BECAUSE IF I WERE TO DO THAT I WOULDN'T GET MY HOMEWORK DONE!!!

Dealing with the damn dog is a lot easier when Aaron is home. He is a lot more patient with her... I know that most of my frustration is the fact that I am already so stressed out about school that she is pushing me over the edge... I just want to cry and scream and everything... But I can't because that will be horrible for continuing the training with Lijha... It could set her back... But, seriously... I am so tired of having to stop reading/writing/organizing/etc for my homework every 15 minutes to let in/let out/clean up after the dog... It seriously makes me want to turn her into an outside dog...

Mmmm.... Tacos....

My all-time favorite food growing up was Tacos. Not the ones you get at Taco Bell, but the ones you made at home. Whenever my birthday came around, I got to choose what to eat for dinner that night (an awesome thing for a 9-year-old)... I ALWAYS picked Tacos.

Why all this Taco bliss? Because that's what I had for dinner... and, no offense to my parents who started the taco-mania, but I have changed the recipe (mwah-ha-ha-ha)...

I make an "adult" version now, made with pork roast. Basically, I put a pork roast in the crock pot and add whatever the heck I want. I think that the last time I made it, I added finely chopped onion and garlic (but I forgot it while I was making it today... it tasted fine without it). I also add some beer to the crock pot... an entire bottle of Dos Equis Amber beer. Then I season it with salt, pepper, cumin, and New Mexico chili pepper. Cook on low all day... By the time you come home from work, your house smells AMAZING! The meat is so tender from cooking in beer all day long, that it just falls apart. Shred some lettuce, chop up some tomatos, open a bag of shredded cheese, warm up some tortillas, and you have an awesome and easy meal!

Serve with some Spanish rice and a margarita on the rocks and unwind from your day! The best thing about Tacos is that I don't have to put whatever I don't like in them. I think that is why I liked them so much as a child. I was a very picky child and wouldn't eat a lot of items. My picky-eating habits didn't matter on Taco night! Even if I didn't want meat (ground beef), I could make a Taco with just cheese, lettuce, and tomato if I wanted... Or if I wanted more of a breakfast meal, I could scramble some eggs to add to the tortilla. Awesome!

Can you tell that I LOVE Tacos? Tacos Rule!

Time for change...

I am tired of being constantly on edge about certain areas of my life...

I am tired of worrying about everything that I do, for fear that it will be wrong...

I am tired of losing sleep over this particular issue...

I am tired of hating my life in general despite the many things in my life that make me happy...

This particular area used to make me happy... I used to feel fulfilled and I had a sense of accomplishment...

My self confidence has taken a real nose dive because of this issue... I second guess everything and assume that I'm wrong all of the time. The uncertainty is leaching into other areas of my life as well. I wonder if I ever was talented in this area. I wonder if I really DO have a problem that means I suck...

I feel myself going down a dark hole, with no end in sight...

So, I'm taking my shovel and I'm digging myself out. I refuse to feel this way and I am doing something proactive about it. Something positive. It has begun!

Happiness is...

As part of my new attitude this year, I will attempt to look on the bright side of things. I have been a pessimist for far too long.

So, despite having to clean up several "accidents", I have thoroughly enjoyed our new puppy. She is getting snugglier (is that even a word?) every day. Today, she gave me lots of puppy kisses on my nose for the first time :)... There is nothing more stress relieving in this world than puppy kisses!

Dinner was a new recipe - French Lentil & Rice soup... The recipe came from a Crock Pot cook book that my mother-in-law gave me for Christmas. I didn't even think about dinner until after my nap, so it wasn't made in a Crock Pot. But it was good anyway. I'm not a stranger to Lentil Soup (from my detox diet days) and have discovered a liking for it. This recipe is simple and quite tasty :)

French Lentil Rice Soup

6 c. Chicken or Vegetable broth
1 c. Lentils, picked over and rinsed
2 med. Carrots, peeled & finely diced
1 sm. Onion, finely chopped
2 stalks Celery, finely diced
3 Tbsp. uncooked white rice
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. herbes de Provence or 1 tsp. dried Thyme
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. white pepper
1/4 c. heavy cream or 1/4 c. sour cream, divided (optional)
1/4 c. chopped Parsley (optional)

Stir together broth, lentils, carrots, onion, celery, rice, garlic, herbes de Provence, salt, & pepper in Crock Pot. Cover and cook on LOW 8 hours or on HIGH 4 to 5 hours.

Remove 1 1/2 cups soup and puree in a food processor or blender. Stir pureed soup back into Crock Pot.

Divide soup evenly among 4 serving bowls, garnishing each with 1 Tbsp Cream and 1 Tbsp Parsley, if desired.

**My Alterations: I rough-chopped all the veggies - I prefer a rustic style soup. I also exchanged brown rice for the white rice. I didn't have herbes de Provence or dried Thyme, so I used Italian Seasoning instead. I heated everything in a pot on the stove and brought it to a boil. Once it reached a boil, I lowered the temperature to simmer and I covered the soup until the rice and lentils were done... It took about 30 -45 minutes. I used an immersion blender and stopped before it got too pureed. I omitted the cream and parsley (didn't have any).

Updates and Outlooks!

So, I've been meaning to update my blog at least once a week. Well, life smacked me upside the head in December, so I didn't have time to write down everything that happened last month... So, bear with me, as this will probably be a rather long post to update everyone on what happened...

In my last post, I commented on the fact that my kitchen took a crap on me... Well, it didn't actually take a crap on me, but the boiler did piss all over everything... It seems like it took FOREVER to get my kitchen back to working order, but it is now back together (for the most part)... I got sick and tired of living in chaos for 2 weeks while they took everything out of my kitchen, let the wall dry, and then to reassemble everything. After much pushing and prodding, they got my kitchen together 3 days before my Christmas company arrived... Aaron came home just before they finished (after being gone for a month) and helped me to put the house to rights. I sincerely hope that our company didn't hold it against us that my usual manically clean house was not up to standards. It was as clean as it could get after being in chaos for weeks and only having 3 days to put it all back. Downside? They didn't finish it completely. I have a working kitchen, but they haven't replaced my flooring yet. Originally, they told Aaron they would come to do it the week after Christmas (but didn't give us a definite date). Then, I called them to find out exactly when they would come to do it... I was told "Monday" - as in January 3... That day has come and gone and I still don't have a floor. Phone calls have so far gone unanswered. I'm just about ready to go get another contractor and replace the floor with what I want (instead of what was there) and still bill the condo association.

Just before Christmas, we heard that a friend had found a puppy along the side of the road... They knew that we wanted a puppy a while back and, since no one came to claim her, they gave her to us. We named her Lijha (pronounced like Elijah, but without the "E"). Aaron picked out the name - after a fixed waypoint on one of the approaches into Bethel. So, we finally got our new addition to the family. Aaron picked her up on his way home last month.Come to find out, she is mostly (if not all) German Shepherd. We estimated her age when we got her around 6 weeks, but we'll find out for sure once her teeth start falling out. She is already just about as tall at the shoulders as Noni.

Puppies! Notice, the gross sub-floor that the contractors left over Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. My biological father, step-mother, and oldest brother descended upon us for the week of Christmas! It was so great to get to spend time with them and share traditions. I haven't spent a Christmas with them since I was about 2, so we were due to celebrate. Aaron surprised me a lot this year with many things that I have been asking for... Like a professional grade Kitchen-Aid Stand Mixer (in red, of course), a new guitar (that is ACTUALLY playable), and a new computer bag that I can use for both school and work when I travel. We ate lots of good food and enjoyed each others' company.

My brother stayed for an extra week after the parents had to go back to work. He and Aaron got some good bonding time in and I enjoyed showing Juneau to my brother. He's talking about moving up here in about a year or so (once he gets his ducks in a row)... That would be totally awesome!

So, for the new year, we hope (and pray and make sacrifices to whatever gods will listen) that Aaron will get to come back to Juneau to fly sometime this year. We will be training Lijha for protection, since I tend to be alone with just the dogs a lot. Noni isn't very intimidating and Lijha, if trained properly, can and will protect me. I should finish the Associate portion of my degree towards the end of this summer.

And, since I can't end a New Year post without mentioning it... My resolution for the year is to "Get Organized"... I've outlined tasks that I want to complete each month to pare down and organize my life and my house. Cross your fingers and pray for me! It starts this weekend...