I haz the patience

Or so says Avalon. I know I've talked a bit about the sticker chart we've been using for rewarding good behavior. So today when we got home from going to a doctor appointment, swimming at the Y, going to the fabric store and grabbing a couple things from Wally World, I told her that she had done "really good job of having a good attitude, not complaining and helping this morning" and that she would get a sticker for it.



"So, good job Miss Avalon, you get a sticker," as I usually address her.



"You did a good job too Mommy."



"I did?" I asked her.


"Yeah, you be happy and smile and you have your patience sewing last night."




I could only laugh to myself realizing how much kids pick up on. I typically sew when she is sleeping but since naps are no longer part of our day I have to wait until night or do some of it when she's awake. And yes, I do lose patience and get irritated with myself and my novice sewing skills. And if you happen to interrupt me while I'm frustrated, you'll probably get a short reply. But last night, I was having some good luck. Or rather, I could read the pattern and do what they were asking me to do.


I really enjoy sewing but teaching myself has been less than easy mainly becuase of all of the terminology. I have to look up every little thing. And then sometimes the pictures that accompany the discriptions make no sense at all. Obviously, I am not a visual learner.

So I started out yesterday with the little poncho/cape. I first made it in brown fleece but the end result looked very cowboyish. Don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against cowboys. To the contrary I quite enjoy the rodeo for more than the events. *wink* But, cowboy and three year old girl don't really go together. So today when I ran to get some elastic for the skirt I also made, I picked up some more fleece, in pink this time

It's super cute and Avalon thinks she can be Little Red Riding Hood, but seriously, what purpose really is there for a poncho?

I had bought the pattern that had both the poncho and the skirt in it, and the fabric a long, long time ago. Cleaning in the spare bedroom last night I came acrossed it and realized I'd better make it before she is not the size 4 that I intended to sew it as.

I had quite a bit of luck and didn't have to rip one seam. And actually discovered that I am learning how to sew. I understood the pattern and how they intended for me to sew it but having made other skirts and jumbers for Avalon, I knew I could do it much easier than was shown.

So (sew) far. hehe. This is the third skirt I've made for Avalon (first one with this pattern) but I seem to have an affection for paisley. Thankfully Avalon doesnt mind. And since her attire of choice is dress or skirts, I will definitely be making a few more of these and told her she could come and pick out the fabric she wants.

And, as Avalon pointed out, I didn't lose my patience once making these. Surely that means progress, right? Now if I could figure out how to take pictures of a three year old child who doesn't want to stand still or look at the camera.

Just as I thought

I checked my hotmail account and sure enough my father's email account was on the blocked list so I don't know how these got through. IN attempt to further thwart his attempts to contact me, I unblocked the address and reblocked it. Time will tell.

Here is what I put up with

The following is an email my biological father sent me in regards to the transgressions he feels I've committed. I never respond as I find his accusations baseless and don't feel the need to create more drama in my life.

He sent another letter today that I will also post where he says I'm a terrible person for not helping my alcoholic brother who landed himself in prison after several DUI's and various other charges stemming from a high speed chase wherein he rolled his car, injured his passenger, and ran from the scene of the crime and disappeared for a year, not once callling to let me know he was okay. Yes I used to help him and then I was labled as an enabler. There is no winning with my father so I do what I feel is right. Joe quit corresponding with me when I asked that he keep the conversations between he and I to ourselves but he wouldn't and my father used what I said and wrote against me anyway he can.


Heather, In spite of what you must imagine you're not friend to anyone, least of all Jeff, the Hughs and Avalon. Some day when you're older, as does my sister Beth, you'll realize that all you collected is broken relationships, ugliness, enemies. Your Mom and I aren't concerned about your feelings or lack of them for us but can't imagine how you can be so heartless to have rejected Joe when he needed you. If it weren't for your Mom and me, Joe wouldn't have had so much as a postage stamp or a pair of undershorts this past two years, let alone a sincere visitor. Sure, you went to see him once but when you found out he was in contact with us...and he had no choice if we wanted enough to eat, warm clothing, legal representation, money or anything else...you abandoned him just as you abandoned everyone else you're related to. You weren't smart enough to realize that the only reason my sisters attended your wedding and Joe's was in revenge against me; they cared nothing for you and still don't as proven by their abandonment of you. They were there to assist your rebellion but cared so little for you they've not come back to try to help you through it. Beth is finally realizing....now that it's too late to do anything about it...that her presence in Larry's, Steve's Mark's, Travis's, and Jared's lives served only to set them apart from each other and her. Someday you'll realize, as will Jeff, your in-laws and Avalon, that your presence, instead of uniting families, served only to divide them. And although you won't believe it now, your actions will someday divide you from your daughter...she won't always be little and Jeff won't always be immature and naive. They will figure you out and see you as the over-painted, often obese, always deceiver you are. When that happens, neither will you have a home or friend here, or family member who care anything about you. Your influence in Kristian's life from the moment he became reacquainted with you produces nothing but strife and alienation; your influence in Tammy's life, nothing short of betrayal to Joe, has done nothing but harm him and Garrett. A good name for you is Jezebel; you're scheming and disloyal, a betrayer, evil in the truest sense of the word. We tell Joe, and mean it, that he's better off without you; thankfully, he believes it. You publish for the world to see your "deep concerns" for him and in those same internet postings painted a picture of me as one who not only wouldn't help him but stood in your shadow in that regard. Joe now understands who you are and why you do this; he sees you for what you are and what you've done, not just to our family, but to his family and yours. Shame, shame, shame on you Heather. Don't bother coming back to see us ever; your Mom and I have left instruction that nothing of ours is ever to go to you and you're not to be allowed even at our funerals. We're glad in one way that things have happened the way they did. Now Hilary has Joe to protect her from you in the event something happens to us. As you have sown, so shall you reap, this an eternal blessing; perhaps, before you die, you will understand it and turn from your ways. Dad


Here is the latest letter today. He is just crazy and manipulative.

Easter Sunday,
and I feel badly for Joe in your regard. He has nothing and no one but us to help him. In spite of what you may imagine about the Corrections system, and in spite of what the incarcerated may deserve, they're given nothing tangible and little to eat or wear. If it weren't for your Mom and me Joe wouldn't have underwear, socks, toiletries, writing materials, stamps, eye glasses, medical and dental care or spending money. His position is so hopeless our concern is that he'll give up and try to harm himself. He's so far behind on child support and has so many judgments and collections he has almost no money left at the end of every month. In pre-release for 9 months now, he has less than $75 a month to spend on himself after child support and judgments. We're glad we're able to furnish him a place to live with utilities and able to buy him groceries and clothing yet he finds little hope in that. How can you look yourself in the mirror knowing how you're treating Joe. Do you think it makes it easier for him because he caused his own problems? Do you think it's easy for him to have to count on his parents for basic needs at his age? For sure, he can't count on you, even for kindness, compassion, sympathy or pity....and he's truly in a pitiable position. What kind of a sister are you? Would you want anyone to treat your daughter the way you treat Joe? Were I you I'd hope with all my heart there is no God. If it's true that people reap what they sow, you're in for a miserable future. Whatever you do, don't say the Lord's prayer....if God forgives you the way you forgive others you'll go straight to hell. I'm ashamed of you Heather; you're such a disappointment to the Nickol families. Dad

Now I'm off to see why the block I had on him isn't there. I don't need this in my life. And I hope you can see why I haven't had a relationship with them for the past 10+ years.

Feliz Dia de Pascua

Or happy Easter to the lay person. It was such a gorgeious warm day. SO warm in fact that we played outside all day today and when putting Avalon pajamas she had a little sunburn on the back of her neck. This sorta thing is exactly what I am looking forward to for this summer! I just don't think I can handle anymore snow. The snow that fell on Friday was just depressing. Alas, there is precipitation in the forecast but hopefully it's just rain.

We only have a week and a half before we leave for Oregon. I am so excited to go on vacation but am a little stressed with all the laundry, packing and piling. I have lists going so I don't forget anything. Having never flown with a child, I don't know exactly how that is going to go. So we are checking one large bag so we don't have so much carryon baggage. Our flight to Oregon lands first at Denver, then Portland, and then Eugene with layovers of just an hour each. I hope that in Denver our gates our close. I've never been in the Denver airport so I don't know if we are looking at a crazy airport or not. Portland is super small and should be an issue at all.

And since our flight takes off at 6 am we have to be at the airport 4-430 meaning we have to get up an hour before that. Not sure how Avalon will do being up that early but we are hoping she will sleep in the car ride from Eugene to Lincoln City. Then the fun begins! I just hope that with all of our switches, our luggage is not lost.

It seems we are kind of moving in the middle of planting season. Typically right now, I replant the grass Murphy has killed over the winter, get the majority of my potted plants in and start thinking about planting the garden and usually have it all done by Mother's Day but we are in Oregon during that so I'm putting it off so we don't have to have somebody water for us and wthen we'll be that much later for everything.

I've been really successful with my weight loss efforts lately and am down a total of 39 pounds. Still I have this doubt that it was all an accident and come Monday morning I will have gained 5 pounds back(which I know isn't realistic) but still. It does really help that I am absolutely loving exercise. The more I lose the easier it is to do and being competitive(with myself) I am constantly pushing myself to see how much I can do. I also find it relaxing and sometimes is the only opportunity to have time to myself. Avalon is very pro-mommy right now. She wants to play with me and sit with me and help me all. the. time. I love that hse wants to be with me. But by about 8 at night I need some space and sometimes exercse is the only way. And now, there is wifi at Y(because my comment cards apparently pay off) I can watch Netflix on my iPod. I'm in the middle of Season 4 of 24. And since I'm such a fan of this show so far, i can completely lose track of time. (Whereas when I watched Glee, that did not happen. Don't get me wrong, I like Glee but I don't love it. I think its all the old choir history in me that loves that show. The plot is kinda weak in my opinion. ) This season of 24 is by far the weakest so I hope it picks up or I'm going to have to find a new show. Any suggestions?

Anyway, must get back to the listmaking...just remembered I need to go dig out Avalon's paperwork for getting on the plane. It's the little things that make me afraid we're going to forget something. Peace!

Peep Show!

I love when Avalon has parties at preschool! It affords me the opportunity to make things that I would never normally make. So instead of feeling down that Avalon is growing up, this is one aspect that I am loving(and book orders too!). But at Christmas I learned that one of Avalon's classmates has an egg allergy(which eliminates most sweets for her). So on party days, her mom bring in treats for her child that are egg free. I can only imagine at 3 that must seem like quite the injustice to miss out on some of the fun treats that parents bring. So for their Easter party I wanted to make something that wouldn't exclude Avalon's classmate. So here is an egg-free spoof on a bird in a nest with eggs.

So here is what you need to round up: Pretzel Sticks, Peeps(chicks preferably, these are nests after all), chocolate coating(I used almond bark) and jelly beans.

1. Melt your coating in the microwave, stirring every 30-45 seconds until melted and smooth. Add the pretzel sticks and stir to coat.(Note: It works better to kind of crunch up the pretzels so they are not so long and also I had to do this in two batches.)

2. Using a spoon, put a fair sized mound of pretzels on wax paper.

3. While still wet, place a Peep on top and add a few jelly beans to look like eggs in the nest. Let dry.

Note: One pound bag of pretzels, and one pound of almond bark made 22 nests. Consequently needing 22 Peeps. And unfortunately, I have all these Starburst Jellybeans leftover and they are so stinking good!

Because I'm Blond at Heart

I made these totally awesome triple chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting. And, gave them all away without taking any pictures. Sorry.

Update

Reading Pioneer Woman's Blog today about receiving blankets(as well as pics of Walter being swaddled with them) reminded me of how useful those little blankets are. Since I had a seriously spitty refluxy child I used them as burp rags but even now we still have several floating around. One is a extra soft dish towel, others in the garage for washing cars, baby blankets for Avalons dolls and then I always keep a few for when Avalon is sick.

Her post also made me wish I had a cute little dog like Walter. BUt alas I have Garbage Gut, I mean, Murphy. A poop eating, garbage digging, Moon dough chowing beast of a beagle. Actually I've noticed a bit of ritual. Besides the occasional garbage incident and barking, Murph is pretty well-behaved during the day. What can I say, I run a tight ship. :) But the minute Jeff walks through the door, he becomes a whining howling begging dog and is pretty much horrible until Avalon goes to bed and he resigns to the couch for the evening.

I've been having trouble sticking to my dieticians instructions. Instead of overeating though, I've been undereating. I just don't see much success doing it her way and I'm also not hungry. I try not to be a doctor using the internet as my resource but even that tells me something different.

Got an email from my biological father that was quite a doozy. I'm not even sure how I got it, as I thought he was blocked so I need to go check that. He alludes that he is reading this blog but I couldn't know for sure. Frankly I don't really care as I have nothing to hide. I'm tempted to post his email on here just to show you his craziness. Part of me doesn't want to indulge him. I don't know, I haven't decided. His accusations are laughable. In addition to he usual complaints,he's added a bit that I'm not in his will and will not be allowed at his funeral. Sorry but I would never take money from him, whether he is dead or alive. Too many strings attached. And I've known for years now that his funeral will be something I won't be attending. Crazy, I tell ya!

I've had the feeling that I am forgetting something but for the life of me I can't remember what. I have lists all over for things I need to pick up or buy, drs appts, things to do and I still have that nagging feeling I'm forgetting something. I have a feeling that may have to do with things a bit out of my control. As I've said before we've been on the house hunt for some time and for me, I just see the timeline for moving getting even shorter as my goal is to be somewhere new by the time Avalon goes to school next fall. But this economy/housing market makes that tough at least to sell our house.

Still I want Avalon to be able to start her schooling career without having to disrupt that and I definitely don't want her to going to the ones in our area. Not being from Billings I've learned alot about the area schools from my time at Poohs Daycare and the children that attended the area schools. Also my mother-in-law has worked at 2 of the 3 southside schools and some of the things that go on, really confirm my feelings. So I did some research with a couple of rating sites. Not so good!, Ponderosa rates below even Orchard with a 2 on a scale of 1 to 10. Also has failed AYP 3 times in the past 5 years.(AYP=adequate yearly progress through No Child Left Behind) (How can you meet AYP if the students aren't adequately fed or clothed)

Jeff works with a gal who has kids that go to Ponderosa and contemplated switching her kids but ultimately left them there becuase she and her husband wouldn't have been able to transport them due to their jobs. She actually had quite a few positive things to say especially about the staff but her chief complaint is that teaching to the bottom of the class and for kids whose parents actually care, their kids are left hanging without challenges. SHe said she has frequent conferences with their kids teachers to ask that the teachers challenge those who are ahead.

It all just scares me. And as those of you with kids know, most parents will do anything to provide the very best for their kids. And as Jeff and I are in a position to do so, I feel it is our responsibility to do it. An education has to be one of the most important things your child can get. So in short i think my anxieties over things like that make me feel like I'm forgetting something.

Got quite the backhanded compliment today in the hot tub at the Y today. It was of course from the guy I've labeled "the conspiracy theorist." I usually avoid him like the plague because he always has so many crazy idea. He's constantly reading "studies" that provide his facts but has admitted that he doesn't have internet the newspaper or a tv because it's all away to brainwash us. Also told me not to eat pork as it's all cloned meat and his wife was the one who said not to "innoculate" Avalon with Gardacil as it will give her HPV.

Anyway, after we swim, Avalon and i sit in the hot tub for a while before we shower. He got in the hot tub about 3 minutes after we did. He complimented Avalon on her swimmigng and then told me that it looked like I was losing weight. Then he says, "Well you got a pretty face, when you lose the weight, you'll be the full package." EXCUSE ME?!? I am the full package be-yotch! It's nice to have people notice but he should just kept his mouth shut!

Speaking of Avalon swimming... She is just doing incredible. She is able to swim without her life vest on whenever she wants. I let her wear it for about the 45 minutes of our hour swim so she doesn't wear out so fast. (I do laps when we swim to get exercise and without her vest she can only last about 25 minutes before she's completely tuckered out. But recently we've really made some leaps. She is now swimming on her back without a vest as well as floating, she can front crawl and do the breast stroke. And in the last two weeks, she's overcome some major fears. SHe hates putting her face in, but goggles have seemed to eliminate that and then she finally has overcome the fear of jumping in. Then last week, we worked on actually jumping in and not bellyflopping. Success, we didn't bellyflop at all.

Then last week her swim teacher said to me that she can swim and she can put her face in but not at the same time. When she puts her face in, her body goes limp. So today, we practiced and practiced and she is putting her face in and swimming! And now because her face is in, her butt comes up and she swims even faster! She swims faster on her back than I swim. Not trying to make my kid out to be a swimming prodigy but I am really proud of her. Its just amazing what she can do when you cultivate that talent.

I've been a little stressed out thinking about how I am going to work out this summer when I can't get Avalon to go to the Y daycare without crying. I think at this point it is the fear of the unknown because it has been so long since she's gone there. But i love working out and while I can do somethings at home i like working out at the gym and having some alone time. If anyone has some tips on getting her to be more agreeable, that would be great.

I am trying to find some more options for the summer for her to do and so far I think I've lined up a once a week art class at the Y, maybe swim lessons(depending on who the teacher is) rock tumble and roll class at the Y or gymnastics, and movies at the theater. Carmike Cinemas has a deal on that every Thursday at 10 they will show a previously released movie for only a dollar with snack trays for only $4. I don't want her every day scheduled but definitely want her to try new things. I'm sure we'll spend plenty of time at the spray park also. Maybe it's been this long winter but I am tired of being home.

Only a 3 more weeks till our trip! So excited to relax and hang out with the family.

It all started with a can of coconut milk

I hate being sick. Yeah yeah, who likes being sick. But I really hate being sick. Knock on wood, it doesn't happen very often but now that I'm a mom there are no sick days. No laying in bed watching reruns of Full House and endless episodes on Food Network. Life must go on whether I'm sick or not. Avalon is very much a mama's girl but when I'm sick she almost smothers me. I think really she is just making sure I'm okay.

I also hate being sick because I have things I need to do and some things I want to do and don't have any energy for either. Yet, laundry still has to be washed, Jeff and Avalon still like to eat and messes don't clean themselves.

I also hate the boredom of being sick and not wanting to do anything. So this afternoon, I sucked it up, finished my laundry and set out to do some baking. And surprisingly it did lift my mood. Unfortunately baking is not the cure to the common cold. I'm still sick. (Thankfully it is only a cold.)

I began looking at some recipes that I had put in my favorites folder and it came down to three things, cake batter truffles, chocolate whoopie pies, and something using the rest of the can of coconut milk in the fridge.

During quiet time, I narrowed it down to the cake batter truffles. With only 3 ingredients, it would be easy to finish if I got started and discovered baking while under the whether is not so fun.

So with my little sous chef, Avalon, we began to mix up the cake batter truffles. But the main binding agent was sweetened condensed milk and I didn't need the whole can. So then, I figured I could use that and the coconut milk leftover in the fridge and make rice pudding. But having only used a cup of the cake mix for the truffles, I now had that to use up and that where the whoopie pies came in. It's seriously like "Six degrees of Coconut Milk." That and I can't stand to waste things. So alas, three tasty desserts for you to try.

Coconut Rice Pudding

While I waited for the cake batter truffles to harden in the fridge I combined the leftover coconut (1 can minus the half cup I used for the shrimp dish early this week) and about 1/2 of the leftover sweetened condensed milk. That was about 1.5 cups total and since I only had instant rice on hand, I used equal parts. I heated up the liquids til boiling and added the rice, removed from the heat and let set covered. After about 10 minutes, I checked it but the rice had too much crunch for my taste and here was no liquid left so I added about 1/2 cup of skim milk and reheated it all till boiling, covered and let set. Perfect! It's coconutty but subtle enough not to taste like shampoo. I was going to carmelize some pineapple but decided it was sweet enough and just topped it with fresh.

I think rice pudding is a thing of the past. However, we grew up eating rice and raisins for breakfast much like you would oatmeal and think rice pudding is passed over far too often. Give it a try. Not all rice dishes have to be savory.

After dinner, the truffles were sufficiently hardened so I decided to dip them in chocolate. Unfortunately I didn't have any dipping chocolate, Wilton chips, or chocolate bark on hand so I used semi-sweet chocolate chips combined with a smidge of canola oil so it wasn't so thick. There is absolutely nothing wrong tasting with this method. It just doesn't harden up the same.

Cake Batter Truffles

Since last year when I first tried, cake truffles(cooked cake, crumbled, combined with frosting and dipped in chocolate) I have been a little obsessed with the technique. It is so easy with such awesome results. Over the last year, I tried different combinations of cake and frosting, decorated them to look like pumpkins and then tried doing it with edible chocolate chip cookie dough. Of late, many food blogs have become interested in what plain boxed powder cake mix does to recipes. I've seen it added to rice crispy treats, ice cream etc. Then the other day I saw someone make truffles with it. Genius.

So today I went about making some of my own. I used a white box cake mix although i think next time, I would use the party chip kind and dip it into all different colored Wilton Chips. Easter truffles anyone?

But I digress, white was all I had. I combine about a cup of the powdered mix and 1/3 cup of sweetened condensed milk to the desired consistency. I rolled them, set them of greased wax paper and froze them. They are naturally really sticky so freezing is definitely a requirement. (Though with most truffles I will freeze them but let them set out for 15 minutes or so becuase after you dip them and they come to room temperature, the truffle expands and leaks out the sides and are not nearly as pretty. Tasty but not as pretty)

I melted about a cup of semisweet chocolate chips and 1 tsp of oil to thin the consistency and dipped them.

Obviously these are sweet, but I'm talking really sweet. They definitely taste like cake batter but one'll do ya. The recipe only made 14 truffles and that will be plenty. I like the concept as I love raw cake batter(Coldstone Cake batter ice cream anyone?) but using the condensed milk as a binder makes it a bit too sweet. I may have to tweak the recipe. But that may be a while, I have a recipe for oatmeal raisin cookie dough that I want to make truffles with first.

So then I was left with this cake mix. So I mixed it with 2 eggs, and 1/3 cup of oil. But it was too wet so I had to add some flour. But if you were to use a complete cake mix with none misssing this mixture should be just right.

I scooped them into rounded tablespoons on a greased cookie sheet, flattened with my palm, and baked at 350 degrees for 6 minutes. They came out soft, a little cakey and perfect for whoopie pies.

So I mixed up some frosting and sandwiched it between two cookies.

Vanilla Whoopie Pies

While the cookies are quite plain, the special frosting inside makes the cookie. Instead of your standard butter/powder sugar mixture, I used marshmallow fluff. So combine, 1 stick of butter, 1 small jar of marshmallow fluff, 1 tsp vanilla extract and about 1.25 cups of powdered sugar. Stick that in a ziploc, snip the corner and swirl of the flat side of a cookie and put another on top.

These hit the spot for me. I haven't had much of an appetite being sick but these tasted so good. I think the frosting be would so good sandwich between a chocolate cookie, maybe a harder one much like an oreo.

So what did I learn today? Rice is so good as dessert or breakfast. I could saved myself a lot of work and made the whoopie pies first. I love my white dishes but they take horrible photos, especially when you are photographing white/light foods. I really need to use my good camera, but it is not nearly as easy to transfer and upload as the other one.

Lastly baking takes my mind off of everything else. Who needs a therapist when I have a kitchen?

Almond Butter Cookies

You had to know that since I made granola bars with almond butter, I was going to have another recipe using up the rest of the almond butter. Essentially, these are like peanut butter kiss cookies only with almond butter and dipped in chocolate instead of placing a Hershey's kiss on top. And while I think almond butter is definitely more subtle than regular ole peanut butter, it certainly has a stronger presence in these cookies. And since I bought the almond butter at a health food store, it's organic without added sugar like the Skippy I keep around the house. And while typically I find peanut butter to be be very strong taste, I actually missed it in these cookies. These are definitely tasty and would appeal to those who don't love super sweet desserts. I however love sugar and missed the sweetness of Skippy(which by the way is the best peanut butter out there!) However, if you're looking for an alternative to peanut butter, this is a great way to do so. And with only 7 ingredients and no need for a mixer, it is a quick and easy way to cure a sugar craving! Ingredients 1 cup almond butter 1 cup sugar 1 egg 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp baking powder 1 cup semisweet choc chips 1 tbsp oil Combine first five ingredients and blend well. If too gooey, refridgerate for 10 minutes. Drop by rounded tablespoon on greased cookie sheet. Cook for 7 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool Melt oil and chocolate chips in microwave. Dip cooled cookies in chocolate and lay on wax paper.

It tastes better than it looks!

Spicy Shrimp in Coconut Sauce

It's not often that something I make for dinner gets the honor of a post on the ole blog but this was an exceptional dish! So exceptional that even my red meat loving hubby liked it and gave the go ahead to make again. I try to switch up our dinners so that Jeff definitely gets something he likes everyother night(which I typically like/eat too).

And since this recipe came from a Cooking Light cookbook(Annual Recipes 2006) it was easy to count my calories with it too.

As I've said in the past, I don't typically cook low calorie or low fat recipes. (I just either make them that way myself or have less of it. ) But Cooking Light tends to hit the mark more often than not without absurd substitutions that change the integrity of a dish entirely.

Unfortunately, this particular recipe doesn't photograph well. And I didn't think to photograph it until after we had eaten most of it. Thankfully I have some left for lunch tomorrow.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup coconut milk

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 tsp minced ginger

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp honey

1/2 tsp cornstarch

1/2 tsp chile paste(like Sambal Oelek)

1/2 tsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsps oil

1.5 lbs large shrimp, pieled and deveined

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

Mix the first 9 ingredients in bowl. Set aside. Heat oil in non stick pan over medium high heat. Add shrimp, saute 2 mins. Add red pepper and cook 1 minute. Add coconut milk mixture and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1 minute until shrimp are pink. Serve immediately.

Notes on Recipe: Do not go heavy handed on the coconut milk unless you plan to go heavy handed on the rest of the the ingredients. I would suggest adding more conrstarch and making the sauce a bit thicker. The recipe suggest serving 1 cup shrimp mixture with 1/2 cup of jasmine rice for a calories total of 310.

I don't know if you would categorize this as a Thai dish but has quite a bit of Thai influence with the coconut milk and chiles. This recipe has a bit of bite served as written so if you like it not so hot or are serving kids, you may want to tone it down.

So despite a craptacular picture, this was a spectacular dish!

Busy Busy

We had a very productive day today. We were relativity busy during the week but it didn't invlolve leaving the house very much so today while Jeff helped his dad move Jeff's sister into a new apartment Avalon and went shopping.

Trying on all of my capris this week, I've discovered that most of them don't fit. Thankfully it's in a good way: they're all too big! Losing weight is great but I don't have anything to wear. I must lose weight in odd places because some of my pants still fit okay around the waist but have all this extra fabric in the seat and crotch of my pants. So I look like I'm usually carrying a load around in my pants.

So Avalon and headed out on a mission to replace some of my clothes. I headed to Kmart of all places. Mainly because it is really cost effective to do so and as I don't intend to stay this size and want to continue to lose weight, I want to spend as little as possible and stay clothed. I did find one pair that fit decently. So we headed to Shopko and found nothing there but did manage to find "Tangled" and a gift for another birthday party Avalon has been invited too.

On the note of birthday parties, I would've never considered throwing a birthday party for Avalon wherein I rented a space and invited classmates. Avalon's birthday is during the summer to she is not in school. I guess I'm glad that Avalon is making friends who want to invite her to their parties.

We headed to the dollar store to get wrapping paper and tissue paper. I don't typically shop at Shopko or Kmart but Target has nothing in the clothes department right now. But i was really surprised at how overpriced those stores were in comparison to Target. I always considered Target the Barneys of those sort of stores but alas, I was wrong. And just from experience having bought baby clothes for Avalon at Walmart, I would never shop there for clothes again. The few things I did buy at Walmart, shrunk or fell apart the first time I washed them.

We stopped by Jeff's parents house and left Avalon with Grandma while I went to get my nails done and then I went to do a little more shopping. Sadly, Old Navy, Kohls, and Ross' had nothing to offer but it was nice to shop alone. I love my munchkin but is nice to have some alone time.

We did hit up Target tonight though. I got Avalon a new nightgown for the summer that wasn't stained or long sleeved like her other ones. Also got her another pair of pants, some cleaning supplies, and an organizer that goes on the back of the car seat so we can neatly store her items in the car. My car past the 550 mile on the odomoter. Seems so weird to see that sometimes. Really hard to believe that I am willingly parking way far away from wear I'm going to avoid parking near people.

Only 1 month until we leave for Oregon. I am so ready to get out Dodge!