Although. This time around I pulled an intelligent: I cobbled together a hair over a month's worth of slow cooker dinners, enough to get us through this six weeks of employment.
I can't promise these recipes will be the greatest ever as I didn't pre-check them all, but some of these we have indeed tried or are on the list yet to be tried. There are more stashed in my computer to post, fyi, ones shared with me by friends and my sister in law Yan, plus others I've amassed. I even tossed one in that I want to make for Finn as a food topper that I suspect he'll love. I can make the board a group board; if you want to be invited and collab', lemme know.
And boy, even though that slow cooker beats the hell out of food, at least it's food. The advance prep made a monstrously huge difference as I'm not running around like a maniac with my head lopped off, shopping and prepping and cooking plus all the other things.
How'd I do it? It took three-ish days. Day one was menu planning and shopping list creation. Day two and three were shopping and prepping, both days. Pile the food into freezer bags or containers, label and stack in the freezer, and bingo, done. Print the calendar outlining the menu, groggily load contents in the early a.m., set the light timer, go.
I find that re-seasoning at the end helps tremendously. Meals that contain pasta, I cook right away then set the timer to pop again, reheat an hour before I get home (I'm gone eleven and a half hours of the day on these gigs). Bagged, precut frozen veggies are your friend. A fat separator* is a must. That light timer* idea was sheer brilliance on Mike's part. And what else, I had other tips....hm, I forget.
Can't say I'm excited to start cooking dinner again though. Thankfully we didn't plow through all the food, I can normal cook it, ease back in, heh.
Anywhooooo.....
Absolutely zero has been done around the house. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zero. And by nothing, I truly mean nothing. Not a damn thing. Not for a lack of want. Mmm hm, yep. Sad. I've got way downcast eyes.
Open eyes though....
While out and about for the movie, our carpool paused at Terrazzo & Marble and holy cow people. Wow. I saw some granite slabs unlike any I've ever seen before. Of course I did not inquire about pricing as I was too scared ("if you have to ask...") but indeed, I was surreptitiously shopping for the kitchen regardless.
Duh.
Of course.
Right? As one does. Even though you're tagging along for work related purposes. And everything is clearly, clearly way expensive. Ahem.
This is only an itty bitty tiny little corner of a gigantic slab from Brazil. It was so unbelievable I halted dead in my tracks, drool dribbling down my chin, I was wide-eyed. That black blob ebbed and flowed and interjected across most of the piece....
I mean, it was mind-blowing. Poof. Dust clouds. Blown.
So much so it'd be a massive shame to cut it. Seriously, it requires a whole building designed around it. So flabbergasted at this piece I was, I forgot to get its name. Anyone?
In fact, every Brazilian granite they showcased was unreal. Obviously here, I am now far too eager to redo the kitchen counters. Alas, I am not allowed, so Mike asserts (repeat link). Cough. But I mean, c'mooooon, how nice would it be?!
Do the floor, do the counters....itchy itchy.
Oh!! Oh! Oh wait, I found it! Omg, you have got to see this: click here...Orca! Lot 3 is the exact piece I was standing before, I kid you not. OH-mg. Right?!
Oh that would be stunning in our kitchen. Stun.ning. Lottery ticket time.
Whew. Rolling along.
As of this writing, two weeks and two days of movie commitment to go. (As of this posting though, three days.) And yes, I have been planning and scheming here and there in betweens and have some yes, *nodding*, nice ideas on the docket so please bear with me a lil' bit longer! I am gunnin' to get going.
Right, a trip around the web. I've been stockpiling fun and/or interesting and/or funny and/or useful links for a moment as this. I hope you find our excursion entertaining!
Ok get comfy and hang on: travel time, wheeee!
Have stainless steel appliances? We do. Are yours rusting? !!!! Right? Our fridge is a bit. It's upsetting. As such, I will try this tip from Bob Vila when I'm done working. Keep ya posted.
While we're on the Bob Vila, repairing a large drywall hole. These Hyde Bear Claw drywall repair thingies* look quite intriguing but I wonder how the finished repair pans out.
On another movie adventure, we stopped in at a Rockler Woodworking store. My first time ever. OH my goodness. Somehow I left with my wallet fully intact and unscathed.
Heh, does the sun make you sneeze when you pop outdoors? It does me. Maybe I'm weird. Though apparently I'm not alone. Heh.
I hope I have not shared this before but if I have, sorry not sorry as yellow is my favorite color. Twenty Five Bold Ways to Decorate with Yellow from Dwell.
9 Things Only Perfectionists Can Understand. Now, see, I am a smidge of a perfectionist. Cough, smidge, right. And many of these I can relate to...too much. And it explains a lot. Which maybe makes more sense than that other article I linked to prior, How to Beat Decision Fatigue.
Because, heh, in pondering the latter, you're not eliminating decisions thereby reducing its fatigue, you're merely being more efficient about how and when you make decisions. A point which the article entirely misses.
Well anyway....
This gave me a good snicker and chuckle, 10 Interior Design Trends that are So Completely Over for 2017. Trends, heh. Please don't follow trends, my friends. Or worry about what other people think is "not cool."
For a really excellent giggle, 21 of the Most WTF Handyman Fails. hahahaha, ahhhhh boy. The electrical socket one, too relatable as those were our basement walls. I'm crying now.
After doing some research on its ins and outs, I'm trying corn gluten meal* this year on the backyard weed scenario, see how that pans out as I am not cool with off the shelf weed killers. Although, turns out I did not purchase enough and now it's too late to spread more. We shall see.
Always one of my perennial faves, Abigail Ahern: How to be Bold & Dynamic with Interiors. Yes. Do it.
And another topic I prattle on about, design mistakes: Turning Design "Mistakes" into Lessons Learned from Design*Sponge.
How about one more: 7 Money-Saving Lessons I've Learned from Renovating Homes from Apartment Therapy.
Hopefully I have not repeated myself from previous web trips; I wish Pocket had folders so I could organize and categorize but alas, no such luck.
Lastly, thank you to all who took the time to come vote over in the JDR Industry Blogger Awards! Voting ended yesterday and it appears I was about ten percent short of the win. But, I have readers like you therefore I am a winner. Thank you much! Mwah!
Only one photo?! How lame. That means a Hailey.
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| Back when Hailey had four legs, I had a pink living room and a DIY re-covered free-to-me throne for her in green and black faux fur juuuust pre-Mike in another part of Humboldt Park. |
See you all real soon!
*The fat separator, light timers, Hyde Bear Claw drywall repair clips, and corn gluten meal are Amazon affiliate links. Mwah, thanks! Please see the "boring stuff" tab for more info.
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