The Yard

There is a learning curve involved with leaf blowers. I had no idea. I recently inherited one so thought I'd put it to use today after trimming the lantana in the front yard.

The first thing I learned is that some stuff just seems too heavy to actually move.

The second thing I learned is that when the wind is blowing, it's an exercise in futility to try to blow debris into the street.

And thirdly, it's a good thing the next door neighbors are renters and are moving, because a bunch of my "junk" ended up in their yard!!


I still maintain that yard work is best left to men. I think they possess a genetic ability to use power tools.

Menu Plan Monday

In no particular order:

1. Chili (in the crockpot) from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book
2. Ziti Bake from Cooks.com
3. Tex-Mex Spicy Meatballs from RecipeZaar
4. Salmon - no recipe needed. Olive oil, salt and pepper. Nuff said.
5. Pizza in a Bowl from Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly.

Brought to you by I'm an Organizing Junkie. Stop by to visit. There are literally hundreds of menus and many of them have links to recipes.

Ouch!

It only took a few months to virtually erase almost 20 years of investments!

It could be worse! This is my smaller non-retirement account.

Disappointed!

This is the giant mural on the side of Sam's school.

The Academy of Mathematics, Science and Technology.

Based on our experiences for the first half of the school year,

I'm recommending a name change.

It should be changed to

The Academy of Sub-standard Mathematics, Science and Technology.

The only Algebra class offered is reserved for 8th graders.

I guess it doesn't matter that my 6th grader was doing

math at the 9th grade level when he started last fall.

He is in the Advanced 6th grade math.

Each year NASA chooses 50 schools in the nation to be Explorer Schools.

I had really high hopes that Sam would respond to,

"Houston, we have a problem."

But I guess that's not going to happen at this school.

Oh, well.

Thankfully his zoned public schools are high achieving and that's

where he'll be until he's off to college.

Ravioli

My friends have a great tradition of making (and eating!) homemade Ravioli each Christmas.

There are three generations of women (and a couple men) making these. I would show you the picture of all three generations, but I wasn't there and my guest photographer didn't get that photo. I'm still grateful to have these photos. It makes me long for family (or maybe just traditions) of my own.

Photos courtesy of Joe

Las Vegas Living

I drive by this local casino to and from Sam's school each day.

It's the Beverly Hillbillies Gambler Casino.

Some of the lights on the sign are burned out but it reads

78 degrees.

In case you missed it, today is January 22

and it's 78 degrees!

New Levels of Boredom

Mike has the TV in the family room.
Ana has the TV in the office.
Karen is playing Solitaire on the computer while partially watching the show Ana has on.


And poor Sam is so bored, he's watching me play Solitaire!

This brings boredom to new pathetic levels.

Menu Plan Monday

Again, in no particular order, except that fish will come early in the week as it's already in the fridge.

• Tilapia picatta with orzo
• Pasta with red peppers and capers
• Shepherd's Pie (ground turkey instead of beef)
• Chicken and 40 cloves of garlic
• Huevos Rancheros

Brought to you by I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Cop Count

Sixteen.

While driving Sam to school on Friday, I saw 13 police vehicles before 7:30am so I decided to count for the rest of the day.

I ended at 16, which is one short of my record 17. Most were Las Vegas Metropolitan Police cars/motorcycles. I did spot a few Nevada Highway Patrol and one or two from Henderson Police Department. My keen "cop observation" skills helped me identify the undercover cops at the gas station. They looked like cops and that was confirmed when they exited the vehicle to pump gas with guns, and thankfully, badges on their waistbands.

The Local News

Why I like the local CBS affiliate better than the local NBC affiliate for the evening news:

The NBC station lead the 5 o'clock news with 5 stories.

• murder
• kidnapping (child recovered in Las Vegas)
• murder
• murder
• motor vehicle crash (fatality) car v. motorcycle

That's when I turned it off and went to make dinner. We had spaghetti alfredo with chicken and broccoli. It was much better than the news.

Recycled

from several years.

1. What is your occupation right now? Homemaker
2. What color are your socks right now? White
3. What are you listening to right now? Ana and her friend playing the Wii
4. What was the last thing that you ate? A chocolate cookie, but I'm going to get my cinnamon roll right now.
5. Can you drive a stick shift? Yes
6. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Listened to a voicemail from Mike because I missed his call. Other than that, I don't recall
7. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Yes, she is my favorite sister-in-law
8. How old are you today? 42. Why do you ask?
9. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Not a big TV sports fan, but I DO watch the SuperBowl
10. What is your favorite drink? Earl Grey Tea
11. Have you ever dyed your hair? In the past, but I don't bother anymore
12. Favorite food? Could be that chocolate cookie from number 4.
13. What is the last movie you watched? Bolt
14. Favorite day of the year? Fourth of July
15. How do you vent anger? Swear at other driver's from my car
16. What was your favorite toy as a child? I rather liked my hula hoop
17. What is your favorite season? Summer
18. Cherries or Blueberries? Blueberries (expensive here in the desert!)
19. Do you want your friends to e-mail you back? Well, I didn't do this by email, but they could certainly leave a comment
20. Who is the most likely to respond? Joe
21. Who is least likely to respond? Everyone else
22. Living arrangements? Single story tract home with a 30 year mortgage I can afford in a city leading the nation in foreclosures
23. When was the last time you cried? I don't recall. I don't do it often.
24. What is on the floor of your closet? Shoes, a dresser and shelves filled with 33rpm vinyls
25. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending this to? Again, not sending
26. What did you do last night? Surfed through all 54 stations on the TV without the cable box
27. What are you most afraid of? Falling
28. Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers? Cheese (crisp bacon, too, if it's available)
29. Favorite dog breed? I like my own chihuahua, but I don't really like dogs much
30. Favorite day of the week? Monday
31. How many states have you lived in? Four (Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Nevada)
32. Diamonds or pearls? pearls (chocolate pearls to be precise)
33. What is your favorite flower? Lilacs

Menu Plan Monday

brought to you by I'm an Organizing Junkie.

On the menu this week, in no particular order (because I'm NOT an organizing junkie!!)...

Day One - Lemon & Dill Chicken, broccoli, brown rice

Day Two - Crab Cake Burgers, maybe on english muffins or maybe on a bed a greens

Day Three - Pasta with homemade pesto (which I made on Sunday afternoon), salad, zucchini

Day Four - I know! A fish! (which is also my favorite line from A Cinderella Story)

Day Five - Pizza provided by someone else at the karate meeting

Only five days for me because my husband likes to cook on the weekends when he has the time. He usually decides on his way to the grocery store. I know it's not cost-efficient, but he's happy and that's good enough for me.

Menu Plan Monday

or...How do you want your ham?


Brought to you by Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie.


I went out on Christmas Eve and stood in line at the Honey-Baked Ham Store to get a ham. When I returned home, the box on the porch held the ham that Mike's brother sent us. We have (had) over 15 pounds of ham to consume. Not easy when only three of us will eat it.

Monday - Curried Ham Popover Pie, broccoli, couscous

Tuesday - pasta with Red Pepper sauce (courtesy of Ana who volunteered to cook tonight!) The recipe calls for gnocchi but Ana is using pasta (probably penne) which is easier.

Wednesday - New Year's Eve! How many ham appetizers can I come up with? We usually snack all night instead of eating a meal. So far I've come up with Glazed Ham Balls and Ham and Cheese Puffs.


Thursday - New Years's Day! Leftover leftovers.


Friday - Mike has the day off, so he will work his magic

Happy New Year everyone. Drink responsibly and drive safely.

A Money Saving Tip

from Sam, age 12

The best money saving tip is...



Don't spend it.

Bolt

I'm on vacation, so you just get a quick note. The review will come later.

It was a Disney movie, so you KNOW it was a single parent household. No Dad.

At least they didn't kill the mother.

Thanks to this blog, I love Germany!! I traveled there as a teenager to play soccer one summer. I liked it then, but I really, really want to go back.

News Flash from Las Vegas

It's snowing!

This is our neighbors palm tree.

Photo courtesy of Ana

A Small Piece of Culinary Advice

If you should happen upon a recipe for Clam Chowder that does NOT call for black pepper, skip it and move on!

Who wants Clam Chowder without black pepper? Also, minced clams are better than chopped.

One other sad note; we're out of saltine crackers.

The Results

Holiday Family Fun Night was a great success!

Tamales, cheese and chili.....delicious
Tamales, shredded pork.....yummy
Tamales, beef.....ask Mike
bunuelos.....not what I expected, but still very good
brownies.....TO DIE FOR!!
atole.....not so much
horchata.....pretty good
punch (apple cinnamon with fruit chunks).....tasty
diet Coke.....whatever
popcorn, freshly popped.....good
chicharrones.....didn't try them


We sampled most of the available fare. Drew the line at chicharrones. I didn't know what they were but they were fried and the kids couldn't get enough of them served with hot sauce. I thought they might be fried pork rinds, and they are. Never did find a churro. They must have been too hard (or expensive) to come by.

The tamales were all homemade by the moms from the school. They were so good we bought some to bring home. At a dollar each, it was a steal! The bunuelos turned out to be deep-fried tortillas with cinnamon sugar on them. Also good enough to bring some home.

Sam had a great time hangin' out at school and our money was well spent. We had a really good time.

Holiday Family Fun Night

Thursday evening is Holiday Family Fun Night at Sam's school.

Since the school is in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood,

the food is usually great!!

This week it's tamales, horchata, atole, bunuelos and churros.

I can't wait!