NOW WITH MORE SPIDERS

Big weekend plans. Eat pizza, make cinnamon sugar doughnuts, watch more Harry Potter and get out and about with the good camera. If time, break out the original Annie Sloan chalk paint and paint something orange.

Life is good.

LOVE ME A FRESH START

Whelp. I cried today at work. Had a pretty good cry-free run, I did. I'm good with that. And I'm soooo happy the puzzle got solved. Started with tears and then turned into a very good day. Huge thanks and shout-out to my co-workers who helped solve a difficult problem.  With that issue complete, it feels like a fresh start.

Love me a fresh start. 

In other news, do you guys change your blog? I do. This time I changed settings not to allow annoymous comments and also removed almost everything from the side of the blog. Not sure if I'll add recipes with food photos on the side, post cartoons or move the blog posts to the middle and ditch the side bar stuff.

I'll give a play. 

In other, other news, after work we did something we haven't done in years, go out to eat. After that we stopped at Home Depot to walk through the Halloween display. Then ended the night under the covers, on the couch, in the dark, re-watching Harry Potter. 

Not too shabby.

With that, I wish you a yummy weekend ahead as I close this post with a Halloween cartoon.

STICK A FORK IN ME (I'm done)

Stick a fork in me I'm done. Although, I gotta say, the last two days some problems bubbled up at work and the old me would have cried first. The new me went straight to problem solving mode, sans tears.

That feels WONDERFUL.

In other news, fries are in the air fryer. Going for simple, quick and easy tonight. For Tim, leftover pizza. 

In other, other news, this is the new area for shooting pictures. That's the baker's rack from the kitchen. Moved it back to the office corner. I'll fill the shelves with camera gear. Nice to have my old corner spot back. I love having a place to shoot stills. 

Check out the mummy below. Saw him and had to snap a shot at the store. I love his little elbows and the resting hand. So stinkin' cute.

And that my Boogerbutts is all that's fit to print. 

Huggs & Bugs, Me. 

DRUMROLL PLEASE ....

Soooo it's Friday morning before work and guess who has three days, count'em three days off in a row? 

In other news, this weekend the project is ... drum roll please ... break down the kitchen and go through every bake dish, spoon, plate, cup, mug, Mason jar and also, dry good ingredients as well as fridge and freezer. 

I haven't done a mass declutter like this since 2016 although, I did do something similar a couple of years ago when I gave away most of my aluminum baking things. Though that was just of that particular category. 

Because when I declutter it's always by category, not by room so any bakeware or cookie cutters hiding the in bedroom closet, those need to come out and boom, everything in one category swept through in three days.

That my folks, is happiness. With that, I wish you a wonderful weekend and leave you with today's cartoon.

Huggs & Bugs, Me.

HELLLOOOOOOOO FRIDAY (now with more popovers)

Whew, whew, whew. I'm POOPED. Pooped, I say, pooped. Also, my brain is FULL because I had three days of training, an hour drive each way. 

I'm tired. 

It's a good tired though because I learned soooo many things at the training and in doing that, resparked my energy for work. I love learning new things then using those new things in real life.

In baking news, popovers, popovers and more popovers. Delightful. Next batch I'm trying fresh herbs to see how that goes. So far I've baked spicy, salty, everything bagel mix, not dogs (fake hot dogs) with non-dairy cheese, cinnamon maple sugar, pumpkin spice and good old salt and pepper. 

So yummy. 

Lastly, a loooooong time ago when the world was flat I featured Friday Question with prizes. Bringing that back today. 

Friday Question: When eating popovers, which combos sound good? To everyone who answers, I award three broken pieces of glass, a paper clip and one rotten toe.

Friday Question: 

Spicy

Salty

Sweet

Savoury

Raspberry

Strawberry

Blueberry

Blueberry Lemon

Pumpkin Spice

Cinnamon Spice

Everything Bagel Mixture

Onion

Onion & Cheese

Hot (or not), Dogs with Cheese

Pepperoni & Cheese

Plain Salt & Pepper

Cranberry

Herb-Style

Garlic 'n Cheese 

Brand New Week (bring on the bakes!)

Good Morning Booootteeeful Bloggers. It's early Monday morning, been up since before the birds and soon to head to work. Here's what I freakin' love. Waking up WAY before leaving for work and using that time to get crap DONE!

Doing this gives me a boost in energy to use toward to demands of the outside-of-the-home, work week. 

Love that! 

In other news, I'm groovin' on the song by Luke Combs from the Twisters soundtrack. Up next, see the movie. Saw Wolverine a few weeks ago. He was delicious. My only complaint is that the Wolverine didn't have his shirt off enough during the movie. 

In other, other news, homemade popovers seasoned with everything bagel seasoning are cooling on the table. Bringing them to work today. And, and, and, working on that banana bread formula to share here. This weekend I made Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Banana Bread in mini loaves. Those who don't like, ginger, cinnamon, glove and nutmeg, no biggie. Easy enough to leave the spices out. Still a darn yummy bake. More to come on that front. 

For now, That about wraps things up. Cheers and boogie boogie! 

And .....

THAT CALLS FOR A TRIPLE HOT DOG

Hey Bloggers. It's been a hot minute. Guess what? Lots of good things going on and some I'll have to share later. For now, I'm popping in from Barnes to say HOWDY! I also started bringing the tablet to work during lunch and it's been nice to read blogs there. 

In other news, I just bought new bluelight readers using Barnes Rewards which paid for a third of the price and these are crazy comfortable. So comfortable that I broke out the tablet to give them a go.

Hot dog. 

In other, other news sooooo much writing food and baking going on in the kitchen. I even set up the C-stand to shoot videos in the kitchen, which is something I really, really didn't think I wanted to get back into. Turns out I was wrong. So I've been editing food videos before work and filming recipes after work. Really going well and when I edit/write before work, I often have a much, much better day at the job. Which by the way, I still have.

Double hot dog. 

Did I mention how comfy these glasses are? Good golly they're nice. I never used bluelight glasses before. Already my eyes feel refreshed and less tired. I'd say that calls for a triple hot dog.

Lastly, the lung issues are well-past gone though I still don't have full-smells back. Some things I smell and others, just don't compute. Taste, I never lost. Funny thing, before all of this, I believed smell and taste were forever married to each other. Nopers. 

Lastly, lastly, bring on Halloween and autumn. Leaves here already turning, walnuts hitting the ground and I freakin' LOVE it. Monster of Frankenstein cartoon up top, little Sally below and more spooky fun to come. 

That's all for now my wonderful Boogerbutts. 

Chat again soon. 

Huggs and Halloween Bugs, Me.

 

GOOD NEWS BAD NEWS POST

Hey Boogerbutts!

Good news, bad news post today. On the good side of life, I am back to work, only I'm not 100%. Still dealing with post Covid complications that date back to February.  

Not fun.

Then there's some stuff going on at work that I can't talk about yet. Also not fun. I'll just add, I really want to stay there. Love my job. However, I'm not sure where things will be thirty days from today.

Since I can't get into details, let's move to the fun stuff. Right now, Bug and I are chillin' outside waiting for Smoochie Face to get home. Then it's to the kitchen. I'm thinkin' parsely pesto. Been re-watching Lidia Bastianich. I love that lady. She makes me think differently in the kitchen. 

And lastly, baking banana bread in the pressure cooker is a wonderful way not to heat the kitchen. It's not quite the same crumb/texture as the oven. Though it's not bad either. I made four total, I think we're up to. Or maybe three. I dunno. I'd have to check my notes. 

Cool beans. Bon Jovi just came on the radio. Time to boogie and get supper started. It's a good song too. The kinda song that if I were just about to pull the car into home, I'd have to take another lap just to enjoy the music.

And that my Boogerbutts, is all that's fit to print. 

Chat again soon. Huggs & Bugs, Me. 

SAD LITTLE FACE

Hello Boogerbutts and welcome to another sad-face post. This thing I have knocked me back. The medicine is helping but boy am I ever ready to be over this mess. 

I haven't baked in days. Days I say, days.

In other news, I wanna bake a cake in the electric pressure cooker. In my case, an Instant Pot. Though I pronounce that wrong because I still call it, instapot.

Maybe not a cake. Maybe a banana bread with chocolate chips. Or walnuts. Or both. Either way, I'm giving the instapot a go. Might be good. Might be gross. Let's find out.

In other, other news, I'm once again headed back to work only this time for a quick shift, followed by Sunday off. Before I shuffle off to Buffalo, I give you my life in cartoons.

Until next post, huggs and bugs, Me.

I'M NOT DIZZY ANYMORE (also I love this picture)

Guess what? I'm not dizzy anymore and today I go back to work. Just a little stuffy. Not too bad though. I'm soon to pack a homemade breakfast sandwich and then hit Starbucks for a Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso. 

For the longest time, I said expresso. I thought it was express with an x. 

In other news, I love this picture taken with my newer prime lens. What I love about prime lenses is they make us zoom with our feet because the lens itself cannot zoom. For me, this makes photography lots and lots of fun.

Whelp... I best get myself to work. Thank you for the well-wishes from the last post. Chat again soon. 

Huggs and Bugs, Me.

Blog Update: Well, it's the next day and things got much worse overnight and I'm stuck home again. Booooo!

NOT BIRD POOP (so that's good)

As soon as I settle outside with the tablet, wireless keyboard and good music, next door cranks the mower. It's soooo loud. Though, that's the least of my problems. Today I'm sick. Been indoors resting, resting, resting. Just wanted fresh air. 

Wait. What's that? Something wet landed on my left arm. I think it's rain. Yep, not bird poop. It's rain. 

So that's good. 

In other news, the Le Creuset from the last post baked like a dream. I've done two bakes and the first one needed a few more minutes in the oven due to the higher rim and the second bake required no extra time. Really love this square bake dish. I'm all about having a few solid pieces with less kitchen clutter than a bunch of crappy bake dishes that work so-so. Same goes for chalk painting tools. Give me a solid brush over those crappy ones, any day of the week. 

In other, other news, yesterday I watched Harry Met Sally or is it, When Harry Met Sally? I dunno. Either way, it's been awhile since I've seen it and it was my perfect being-sick-on-the-couch, movie. Speaking of the couch, I'm headed back there with a nice big cuppa cold water, tea or soup. Still can't decide which yet. Then read blogs and when that's done, I'll pick another movie. 

Lots of rest, rest, rest going on here today. 

Chat again soon. Huggs and Bugs, Me.

PS: Here's hoping that your day is going better than mine. 

IS IT LIDDED OR LIDED?

I freakin' LOVE the baking isle at HomeGoods. A few years ago I snagged a great deal on a lid-free Le Creuset. This thing bakes like a dream. Dream I say, dream. Only downside, no lid.

Well guess what my Boogerbutts, I finally found a Le Creuset with are you ready? Are you sitting down? A lid! Yeppers, scored me a lidded Le Creuset and I am one happy whisk.

Did the heavens just open and angels start singing? Because that's what's going on here this morning. And dig this, since I don't have to go to work until later, first thing I did this morning was pop in a test bake.

Hot dog. 

Wait, is it lidded or lided? Or with lid? Really, I don't know. Either way, in about ten minutes I check the bake to see how she's doing. This Le Creuset has higher rim and that can change bake times. I'll let you know in the next post. 

Meanwhile, I give you today's cartoon .... 

THE STRUGGLE IS REAL

GRAB AND GO

This weekend I have two, count 'em two days off in a row. And lemme tell ya', I'm gonna play, play, play.

In other news, Tim made serious progress on the updated shared office and photography space. I predict many, many new photos to come. 

In other, other news, I meal prepped yesterday so when I get home late tonight food is ready. I also started Saturday lunches so if we hit the road, we have homemade food ready to grab and go. 

Love, love, love that.

Well Boogerbutts, that's all for today. Just a quick pop-in post. Long shift today although I gotta say, feels like it's gonna be a good one. Chat again soon.

Huggs and Bugs, Me.

NUTS TO THAT NONSENSE

 

What? How is it another day already? Can someone please tell me where they go? 

In other news, last night Hubby stopped to get subs. 38 smackers for two large subs. Sure, we'll each get two to three meals each. 

Still. Almost 40?

Nuts to that nonsense. I'll make our own.

In other, other news, Saturday we hit Barnes and it was WONDERFUL. Sunday we opted to skip Barnes and stayed home. Lemme tell ya', I played in the kitchen all ding dong day long. 

Between cooling times and dirty dish, I also plopped on the couch to watch The Spring (and Summer) Baking Championships. I love those do-some, sit-some kinda days. And dig this, I wrote a new formula for sprouted spelt baked cake doughnuts. More on those soon. For now, I'm headed to work, even though I'm daydreaming about writing new bakes.

Chat again soon. Huggs & Bugs, Me.

Hello Weekend!

Hello Weekend! It was my short-shift Saturday at work. Smoochie Face dropped me off and after work we headed out. Ten guesses where we landed. Clue in the cartoon. 

Monster of Frankensteined Brownie Bake

Still chipping away at the updated photography space. For me, going back to the lower tables and saw horses makes shooting easier. Hoping by the end of this coming weekend it'll be done, done, done.

Donesville.

In other news, a warm batch of brownies cools as I blog on the tablet, outside with Bug. It's a new formula I wrote based on two other recipes I wrote before. I monster of Frankensteined my own bake. 

This just in. We sampled the bake and it's less of a brownie and more of a soft chocolate cake. That's okay too. Sometimes I'm headed one way, and the ingredients decide to go their own way. Regardless, I always have solid notes to bring to the next bake I write.

Which works because I love writing bakes. For example, I decide how many grams of sprouted brown spelt to use. Or will I go with oat flour? Sometimes it's both. Which fruits and veggies will I sneak into a bake and how many grams of each? I'm telling you writing bakes is the best! And baking doesn't have to mean high sugar, refined oils, eggs, dairy or cholesterol. Nope, nope. I don't bake with those ingredients. That said, I love, love, love watching the Spring, Summer, Holiday and Halloween Baking Championships. 

Such fun shows! Highly recommend.

And that my Boogerbutts, is all that's fit to print. Just gonna pop another bite of bake in my gob and call it a night. Chat again soon. 

Huggs and Bugs, Me.

Hot Dog. Life is Good.

OMG. If I haven't yet mentioned how much I LOVE being on staycation, allow me to indulge.

I love, love, love, this time we have off. We go where ever the wind takes us. Shockingly, the wind blew us right back to Barnes. 

Heaven!

In other news, I finally bought a new writing/art bag. Got a good deal. Thank you price-matching. And lemme tell ya' this bag fits my art tablet, writing tablet, EMR pens, normal people pens, my paper journal, ear buds, pretty purple mouse and matching keyboard, iPod and a few other goodies to boot.

Delightful. 

In other news, once we get home, it's a short rest, snack and then hit the office/writing space for Tim and an updated photography area for me. Or... we'll vegout an watch Creature Features. That's what's fun about staycations. 

Anything goes.

In other, other news, yesterday we went to get Smoochie Face a new writing chair for the office. We were there for one deal and instead landed and an even BETTER deal on a BETTER chair. 

Hot dog. Life is good. 

20 YEARS MARRIED (how 'bout them apples?)

Helloooo Bloggers! So much to share that I don't know where to begin. Let's start with a belated Happy Easter cartoon. 

Guess what? If you guessed that we're celebrating 20 years of marriage, on staycation and at Barnes, then you win a star on your forehead and an A on your paper. 

In other news, the radish sprouts are spicy and taste of a good radish. The bad news, no pictures yet. On the sunny side, macro shots to come because we swapped things out. 

See, I tried having a taller photography table only I'm short and that didn't work. Going back to a lower bench on one side and saw horses on the other. Much lower and easier. 

Another thing I did was remove the sewing fabric from one of the tables. Since I wasn't using that space for photography, it turned into a dumping ground for unused new(ish) fabric. I've since sewn one blanket for Smoochie Face and have one more to make for the couch. Followed by Halloween potholders. 

Hiding in the corner of the room are wooden planks that don't belong. To me, a room should  be tasked with one to two things. That's a writing/computer desk for Tim and a photography corner for me.  

In other, other news, today's mail had my new purple/lilac/lavender tablet cover. I LOOOOOOOOVE it. I'm at Barnes writing so I'll have to show you next time. Also at the post was a bag of rocket/arugula sprouting/micro green seeds. We LOVE rocket. Love, love, love, love it. Even the name, Rocket. It's perfect for that spicy good kick. Excited to watch the seeds grow, photograph the sprouts and then gobble them up. 

Num, num, num. 

Lastly, the goal during staycation is to weed through my cooking and baking tools one last time. Donate the what I'm not taking. The easier we make the move, the better. Plus, since the Great Declutter of 2016, I'm a "use it or lose it" gal. 

And that my Boogerbutts, is all that's fit to print. Until next post, huggs and bugs, Me. 

 

THIS JUST IN ... I LOVE BAKING!

This just in ... I love baking. More specifically, writing bakes. The latest is Blueberry & Fig Bake. Never put those two together in a bake and wanted to give it a go, so I did and we LOVED it. Of the last five bakes written, the Blueberry & Fig Bake, takes the cake. Though the Apple Cinnamon Date Bake, the first one was good. The second one, not so much. I added pecans to the batter and couldn't taste a single nut. And, I didn't really love how they set up in the muffin cases. On the sunny side, it gave me and idea for a pecan oat crunch topping for another time.

Guess what tomorrow's bake is? If you guessed Vanilla Banana Bake you win three bottle tops and a piece of ABC gum. You're welcome.

In other news, I started a sprouted radish experiment. These sprouts should be spicy. Can't wait to eat them. Can't wait to snap shots with the macro lens. Hopefully the sprouts are ready in time for my next post. 

In other, other news, below is a picture of my haul. I can't add and that's why I ended up with two big bags of popcorn kernels. The sprouting lids came with a coupon (hot dog). And The Detectorist we've seen many times. We haven't seen the movie that takes place five years after the series. That'll be fun to watch. The real star is the vanilla bean pods. Have you ever made vanilla cashew milk?

Delightful. 

And I guess, that about wraps up this post. Tomorrow is a half-day, which means head to the market, get done and get home to bake. For now, I'm gonna flop on the couch and watch a little something something before it's off to Snoozerville City. 

Wishing you a yummy week.

Huggs & Bugs, Me. 

HOT DOG! I'M ON THE MEND (hoping for good this time)

Hellooooo Boogerbutts. Guess where we are? 

If you guessed Barnes you get a star on your forehead and an A on your paper. Haven't been here in weeks. Weeks, I say, weeks.

You know when we get sick, heal up and yet don't feel all the way better yet? Just tired and off. When I got Covid in February I never recovered. A month later I still wasn't right. Turns out, I had bronchitis, water in my ears, a nasty sinus infection and needed eletrolytes.

I never had an infection that messed with my eyes so bad as this. I thought, my eyes were going bad. Soon as I got on the cleanup-this-sickness plan, my eyes were the first things to correct themselves.

Being able to read and write again is heaven. Heaven I say, heaven. 

I'm using an inhaler for the first time and I love it. I'm long-past contagious and it's just sooooo nice to be at Barnes, reading and writing again. I had no idea the sinus infection could mess with my eyes. Feels good to be on the mend. 

Speaking of writing, this past week I wrote three new bakes. Yesterday's bake: Apple Cinnamon Date Bake, made with spelt, oat, medjool dates and 50ml of local-down-the-road, maple. Sooooo yummy. Next bake, same formula with pecans. Then after that, the same formula moved into muffin form, just to see how the batter I wrote, holds up. Sometimes a bake behaves one way in one bake dish and another way in another pan/shape. I'll shoot for mini muffins and breakfast muffin, sizes. Just to compare. 

In other news, I'm sleeping better. Less worn-out before and after work which means that I get more out of my day (like writing three bakes last week and preparing good meals). We did eat out twice last week and it's up in the air if we do takeaway on the ride home. 

In other, other news, who loves Barnes? Sometimes it takes me a bit to get myself here and then when I'm here I'm like, duh, I could have had a V8. I feel a lot of hope and good energy when we hit Barnes cafe'. We read, write and enjoy good drinks. Sipping on my second Soya London Fog, as I type. 

Delightful.

Even walking around Barnes, feels good. Guess what? My lungs were able to slowly make it up the Barnes stairs and I didn't need the inhaler. Hot dog! I'm on the mend. 

And that my friends, is all that's fit to print. Chat again soon. Huggs and Buggs, Me. 

I'm Pooped - Pooped I Say, Pooped!

Raise your hand if you're tired from the day. I really, really am. Even though we like homemade food better, it's just not gonna happen today. Smoochie Face is on the ride home with eats and boy, I'm starving. 

After we eat, I'll shower, get into my jammies and plop on the couch. I have more Spring Baking Championship and also I started a Kong, I wanna say Skull Island. Can't recall for sure. We have Max now. 

Does anyone else trade out streaming services? We do. I love that too because we can't watch them all and this saves us money. Plus, we enjoy it more this way. We've been doing this for a few years now. Swapping out the streaming. 

Love that. 

In other news, I have more sprouts started. Mung beans and also quinoa. Never did the quinoa before. Excited to see how it goes. Haven't shot any macros yet. That's gonna be fun. Tonight though, Tim uses the computer for game and me, I'll be on the new couch watching Kong and/or spring baking. 

And that my Boogerbutts is all that's fit to print. 

Huggs & Buggs, Me.

Helloooooo Booooteeeffful Boogerbutts

Hello Booootttteeeful Boogerbutts. It's been a hot minute since my last post. I'm here today, Saturday at the clean kitchen table (is that not a wonderful thing or what? A clean kitchen table - it's the best I say, the best). 

Also wonderful is that it's Saturday and I've been up since the wee hours. Love that too. We're gonna hit Barnes when they open which likely means we'll get the best seats in the house. 

Delightful. 

Less delightful is how we wasted money this past week eating out. If the kitchen had been clean (like it is now), we'd still have that money. 

That's not a bad or good thing. It's just a thing. It gives me something to share and write about as we go through this fun-money-saving-big-goal of ours. 

To help save money we moved our car loan over to a better bank that allows principle only payments. The bank we had, didn't. It was stupid. So now, it's a lower interest rate and easier payoff and the other bank can suck it.

Another thing we did to move the needle is we have money meetings. Had one last night before bed where we talked about the kitchen and how going into next week we'll improve that. With a nice clean kitchen table, it should mean I blog more and read more blogs. I like sitting at the table. So peaceful here. 

In other news, we're still using the $350 gift card to Barnes so all we'll spend is gas money to get there. We're okay with that. Yes, lots of savings going on and getting the car paid down however, we still hit Barnes when we can. Today, I'm home, Tim's home and it's a perfect Saturday to get there when they open and enjoy our morning. Later tonight we'll watch a Creature Feature Movie and dig this, we already bought our Creature Feature Movie food. Cauliflower pepperoni pizza for Smoochie Face and organic red pepper hummus with veggies and homemade fermented salsa for me. Oh my gosh, have you ever made fermented homemade salsa?

Seriously, the best salsa in the history of ever. 

EVHARRRR. 

And that my Boootteeeeful Boogerbutts of BloggerLand, wraps up this post. I'm about to make breakfast potatoes from instant pot leftover potatoes along with maybe pancakes, maybe waffles. Not sure which yet. Either way, homemade goodness on the way. Then later I'll catch up blogs (and IG as well). See what you've all been up to since I've been gone. I think, I missed almost all of winter here on BloggerLand and TheGram. 

PS: For those who guessed grapefruit on my last post I award you one slimly button mushroom, three broken twigs and two rocks. You're welcome.

Until next time, big huggs from me to you! 

Macro Mothman + Friday Question

Home from work. Was a good day. Got spuds in the pressure cooker. I'm off artificial/frozen potato anything. So no potato puffs (they're like tater tots), from Aldi. Instead, making warm potato salad. 

Ever eat potato salad warm? Oh my gosh, I love it. 

In other news, here's a shot Mothman. Not a true miniature, unless compared to the real Mothman, then this is teeny. Tim got him this week and anytime Tim gets a new thing like this, I gotta break out the camera and play. 

In other, other news, we looked at the outside of a house this past weekend. Just too much wrong with it. Still nice to look. 

Lastly, Friday Question. Anyone of correctly guesses what the last image is wins two broken horse shoes and a used ear plug. 

You're welcome. 

And that my Boogerbutts and Shutterbugs, is all that's fit to print. Hope you're having a yummy week. Did I mention potato salad? So good. 

Chat again soon. 

Huggs & Bugs, 

Me

Friday Question

What am I?