Quarantine Cooking -Week 5,432

Hey All You Cool Cats & Kittens!!

Yeah, Yeah, all of the gif's today will be Tiger King inspired. Why? I really have nothing better to do! haha


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So, does anyone else feel like that all they do is cook, eat, clean up, cook, eat, clean up, cook, eat, clean up.........
Throw in some laundry and planning for the next meal and standing in the pantry staring at the food and that's how I'm spending my days.

Let's recap the dinner situation because I think we could all use some fresh ideas about now.

Monday, April 6:  Orange Chicken & Veggie Fried Rice
Tuesday, April 7: Mini Taco's &  Chips/Salsa/Queso/Guacamole We had to clean our NASTY pool filters and we didn't have dinner until close to 8:30 pm.  So I found some Mini Taco's in the freezer and popped them in the air fryer.  Turned out to be pretty tasty.
Wed., April 8:  Grilled Pork Chops with Roasted Broccoli
Thursday, April 9: Ham Steaks, Mashed Potatoes & Green Peas
Friday, April 10 :  We ordered from the Mexican Restaurant LaChoza down the street from us.  We can ride our golf cart there to pick up our order & snagged some margarita's to go!!
Sat., April 11: We had Easter Dinner :  Ham, Scalloped Potatoes, Green Bean Casserole, Roast Squash & Zucchini and Deviled Eggs.   Angel Food cake with Strawberries and Blueberries over the top rounded out dinner.
Sunday, April 12:  Easter Brunch:  Bacon & Fried Eggs from the Grill , Cheese Grits and Toast


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Saturday started out dreary and sad but Sunday was absolutely beautiful then turned windy and cold last night.

I have Fajitas, ghoulash, maybe some lima beans & Cornbread, and spaghetti rolling around in my mind for this week.  We've got some chilly nights coming so I think I'll get those beans and cornbread and ghoulash in.

I had lots of self rising flour so I made these cookies and I made BAGELS!! Ya'll I made Bagels.  Granted they were the 3 ingredient kind but nonetheless I made them. They weren't perfect and Paul Hollywood would've complained about them being a bit doughy in the center but they were pretty tasty.  I'll definitely try them again.


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Yep, I know that's not Tiger King but I could hear his voice while Hubster was tasting the bagels!


So, that's all the updates I have at this time. I'll try to check back in and see how you guys are doing in the the next few days.

Stay safe, wash your hands and be kind!

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Shelter at Home STILL happening!

Hey Peeps!!

yep, here we are day 10,000 it seems on staying at home.  I have a feeling this week is going to be a tough one so hang in there.  Stay at home if possible, keep washing your hands and keep praying.

Are you all feeling like this is ALL you do??!!!


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Cook and clean, cook and clean, and cook and clean.   I want to bake bread and cookies and yummy treats but finding flour is pretty difficult.   I did make these Flourless Fudge cookies last week, these are so gooey and fudgey right out of the oven and if you don't eat them then pop them in a container and put them in the freezer.  That's how we eat the bulk of them is right out of the freezer, they are delicious that way.   I also broke down and made these yesterday Italian Breakfast cookies.  Of all the cookies I make at home these are hands down my very favorite.  I mean I could eat every single one without batting an eye!!

I also made my first London Fog tea drink yesterday, some folks call it an Earl Gray Latte. MAN, it was good!!  I've since learned that a touch of lavender will really elevate it so I may try that this afternoon.   I had mine while eating the above mentioned cookies.   Maybe we'll start making afternoon tea a thing around here.

Anywho...man can not live on cookies alone so a quick recap of what we've had for dinner since the last time we chatted.

Wed., March 25th-  We did not have ham as previously reported.  I wanted to grill out.
         Grilled pork chops, Salad and Tx Toast

Thurs., March 26th - Hubster had Taco Totcho's and I had some pasta with marinara sauce  (leftovers)

Fri., March 27th - Joe's Pizza (local business we are trying to support) (we ordered carryout pizza)

Sat., March 28th - Mere & RB came by on a food pickup run.  We hung around outside because it was a beautiful day and maintaining social distancing is easy when you have a big back yard. We also re-watched a few Tiger King episodes out on the back porch tv.   We grilled burgers, had potato salad and baked beans.

Sun., March 29th - Hubster & I made a Costco run.   We had Costco Stuffed Peppers and roasted snap peas for dinner.   (If you haven't tried those Stuffed Peppers they are AMAZING)

Mon., March 30th - Portuguese chicken from the grill, Roast potatoes and Roasted Broccoli

Tues., March 31 - we picked up a big brisket at Costco and the neighbor smoked it.  It was incredible!!  Also the last of our pretty & warm days.  We had brisket, corn on the cob and baked beans with jalapeños .   Strawberry shortcakes for dessert.

April 1st- Abogg ran over for a grocery run himself.  He's still having to report to work every day so after everyone's temperature had been verified we had Catfish Po'Boys for dinner.   Hubster and he drove thru Chicken E and picked up the fish.

April 2nd -  I made Chicken Pot Pie  and we had a little side salad to go along with it.

Friday, April 3rd - Hubster made brisket Nacho's and I had some Brisket taco's.  Leftover night

Saturday, April 4th - We had to make a run to Atwoods so we picked up What-a-Burger from the drive thru on the way home.  It was a real rainy and dreary day and pretty chilly.  Later that night we turned on the fireplace, had popcorn and binged about 7 episodes of Ozark.

Sunday, April 5th - the day started out gloomy and I made breakfast of biscuits with canadian bacon, cheese and eggs.  Hubster played some online video games, I baked and then it cleared up so we could work in the yard a little bit.  We had a jazzed up Costco frozen pizza and salad for dinner and we finished our Ozark show.  WOW-Season 3 was definitely way better than season 2!!

So here we are coming up on this week, I have no plans for dinners this week just yet.  I'll probably do a regular grocery run later in the week.  We need some fresh produce along with some new ideas! haha   We'll probably do take out Thursday, Friday or Saturday from our little restaurant LaChoza.  They are only open those 3 nights for take out and like many other businesses, are struggling to stay open.  We really enjoy their food so we are trying to support them when we can, plus we can actually walk or ride the golf cart to get the food.

Tuesday evening is the last episode of one of my favorite series and I'm really going to miss it.



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Maybe, I'll start over and watch from the beginning because laughter is the best medicine and folding in the cheese in ALWAYS funny!



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Take care of yourself peeps, hang in there, brighter days are coming!!

Peace, Love & Cookies

10 Tips for Quarantine Times

Hey There Ho There Peeps!!!

Well, here we are again with nothing but Time.   With everyone stuck in the house I thought I'd share some pointers with you on ways to keep your house and you from becoming a disaster zone.

First up, I "loosely" live by the FlyLady and her practices.  If you are TOTALLY living in C.H.A.O.S. and don't know where to start I highly recommend you start with her.  You'll never be overwhelmed and little by little you'll get all those big projects done.  

In the meantime here are a few tips to help you out during this time:

1) Unless you are working form home and your job requires it, don't beat yourself up over getting off your schedule.  We're all going to be "off" for quite some time, go easy on yourself.


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2) Spend 15 minutes at some point during the day sweeping/vacuuming/dusting.    I mean we all know there are chip and cookie crumbs all around our workspaces.  haha  I'm not telling you to clean your entire house and spend hours, just find 15 minutes when your activity tracker is telling you to stand up to do some light tidying up around the house.

3)  Do a load of laundry.  Just one load, wash, dry, fold, put away.  Don't let the laundry take over, a load a day keeps mount wash more away!!  (Flylady)  Also, you need to change your clothes anyway your pj's are starting to smell.  (Case in point: While I wrote this blog post I washed a load,  moved them to the dryer then folded and put away; easy, peasy)

4) On that note, take a bath/shower EVERY DAY!   I personally don't take one as soon as I get up, mine usually occurs around noon and sometimes I read in the tub for an hour or so. It doesn't matter when but do take some sort of bath/shower every day.   And put some lotion on those dry hands!


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5) Take the 15 minutes before you head off to bed to empty the kitchen sink of dirty dishes and start the dishwasher if necessary.  No dishwasher? Wash those dishes NOW.   Believe me, waking up to a sink full of dirty dishes is a good way to start your day off wrong.


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6) Speaking of starting the day off:  Get up, go relieve yourself, drink a glass of water and MAKE YOUR BED!!    Don't let that bed tempt you to nap all day, you should do this every day but during this quarantining it's especially important.  And don't forget, at least once a week those sheets should get washed too.



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7)  Get coffee pot, water, clothes, etc ready for the next day.   Hubster lays out his clothes the night before religiously and while he's doing those things I usually get the coffee pot ready to go so all I have to do is hit the button in the morning.  I also get Hubster's big water glass filled up and in the refrigerator so he can grab it as he goes to work out in his office.    Seeeee, the sink is clean and you have everything you need to start the day!



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8)  Take a walk, even if it's only 15 minutes. Hopefully you have some area near your home where you can get outside and you can still practice your social distancing.  The fresh air will do you some good and your watch probably already told you to stand up anyways.  If you can't make sure you are doing something physical for at least 15-20 minutes a day even if it's chasing your toddler down for a bath.



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9) Try to limit your social media time.....I know this one is seriously hard but try.  Decide to hop on Facebook, check out some blogs, look for some meme's then set the timer.  Set the timer for 15 minutes then get up from the computer and do something else.  You can come back later but try to limit the amount of gloom and doom you expose yourself to each day.




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10)  Take care of yourself, mentally.  Write in a journal, meditate, sit outside in the quiet, take a bath, make a gratitude list, etc.  Whatever GIVES you a mental boost, we are all different and we all need different ways to clear our minds of the stresses of the day.   Do what works for you and don't forget that sometimes, doing for others helps you more than them and that 1 extra cookie isn't going to kill you.  (unless you are a diabetic then it might but you already know that!)

Stay safe, wash your hands and BE KIND to everyone, we are all doing our best!

Peace, Love & Hand Sanitizer!

Quarantine....Day 4,379

Hey Peeps!!

Hope you are all doing well during this fine Pandemic we're experiencing!   This self proclaimed homebody is getting B-O-R-E-D indeed!   Don't get me wrong I have PLENTY to do.  Take my bathroom, last week I started painting it (LONG overdue) and it was raining and it was fine.   My wallpaper samples came and I'm not crazy about either of them so those are hanging over the tub still reminding me that I need to find new wallpaper samples.

 My closet (which is part of the bathroom) is the catchall for all my supplies so this is what it looks like....

The sun came out yesterday, FINALLY, and it was 80 degrees and I don't want to be cooped up in the house so I played around in the back yard yesterday and then washed my car so until it rains, that bathroom is probably going to be a mess! haha  

Anywho, I thought I'd pop on here and share what we've been having for dinner.   Since everyone is in the same boat of having to eat at home and running out of ideas for easy dinners I thought I'd share what we've had and you can show me what you've been doing.   There won't be photos because I haven't taken any.  I will probably throw in some odd ones from my camera roll just to make sure you are awake.  haha

Let's start waaaaay back on the 16th after we took the kids on a Costco trip in preparation of the impending lockdowns.   

Monday- March 16:  We had Spinach/Chicken Ravioli with a Salad

Tuesday - March 17:  Stir Fry 

Wednesday - March 18:  Pulled Pork (Costco) on Hawaiian Rolls and Potato Salad

Thursday - March 19: Grilled Chicken  &  Salad

Friday- March 20: Homemade Pizza's    ( I made a grocery run today, mostly for fresh produce)

I'm currently reading this creepy book.   I read it many moons ago but it was the book for April Book Club, it's now the May book club book.  Charles Manson freaks me out so bad!!

Saturday - March 21: We ordered Take out from the Mexican restaurant, La Choza.  It's just outside our neighborhood.  We even rode up there to pick it up on the golf cart.  

Sunday - March 22:  Grilled Pork Chops and Roasted Green Beans with Hawaiian Rolls

             This was the laziest day we've had, it was rainy and icky and we piddled around in the house               doing nothing most all day long. 

Monday - March 23:  Lemon Pepper Shrimp Scampi, Salad & TX Toast   ( I've made the lime pepper shrimp scampi on the blog before and the only thing is I used a frozen shrimp and followed the directions on the package for defrosting.  It didn't take nearly as long to cook so watch your shrimp and don't overcook them)  

Tuesday - March 24:  Taco Night  We had regular hard shell Taco's and a cooked up a corn & black bean skillet mixture with some fresh jalapeño's as the side dish.  I'm going to mix up some rice and we'll have Taco bowls for lunch today.

Wednesday - March 25:  Tonight we are having Ham steaks with mashed potatoes, green peas and biscuits. 

I also had this bottle of wine over the last 2 nights.  I'm not a huge Chardonnay person but my "wine guy" recommended it to me and he was NOT wrong.  It's lovely!!  We've been eating out back on the patio in this wonderful weather so it's paired perfectly with that.   

In case you wondered, Winston has been extra vigilant with protecting our kitchen door from evil doers.  He's done more than anyone's fair share of napping too, he's really having no trouble with this Shelter in Home initiative.   

He's also quite the pro at finding all the mud in the backyard and we've had a few dips in the pool to clean our feet.  As a matter of fact, I left you guys momentarily after the above photo to do just that.  I'm gonna get a shower because now my feet are chilly!   The pool is only about 65 degrees but it's actually not horrible.  I'm considering a float excursion later today!  

Don't forget....let us know what you're having for dinner!  Stay at home and keep washing your hands!

Peace, Love & Toilet Paper

Monday Musings 2020

Hi Peeps!!

It's 2020!!!!   I'm still sad this didn't happen......



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However, I'm going to attempt to re-enter the world of blogging, oh it may not be much to write home about but I'll come up with something.

In other news, I just finished my 2020 Detox.   Yeah, it's January 6th and I'm done with it, I'm just fancy like that!


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Ok, fine.....I had a stomach virus. Details, details!    Hubster and I made our annual pilgrimage to Dillards on New Years Day and I should have known when I couldn't finish my first cup of coffee and switched to hot tea that something was wrong.   We trekked through Dillards (scored a major deal on some Tumi luggage) and then headed home.   Later that afternoon I started dinner, the usual Southern meal:  Black eye peas, cabbage, greens, ham and biscuits and we were still at the table and I felt a little rumbly in my tummy and made a quick exit to the restroom.   Well, that my friends was the beginning of a VERY long night.  Let me just say that if you have never vomited black eye peas then you should thank your lucky stars!!!  So here we are 5 days later on January 6th and I had a big spoonful of scalloped potatoes, roasted green beans and a few bites of brisket for dinner and that's the first thing I've had since January 1 that wasn't liquid.  I had a little soup Friday night, Saturday and Sunday night but nothing solid save a few saltines, which reappeared a few hours later.  Anywho, the holiday pounds are gone and I think we might finally be resuming normal.  Time will tell but thankfully I seem to be the only family member who was blessed with this involuntary detox program.

I'm still working on getting my planner set up for the new year and it's possible I might actually get the Christmas decorations down before Valentine's Day!   It was a beautiful day Sunday and Hubster and I managed to get all the outside decor down and stored back in the garage attic so our HOA will be happy.   The light guy should be by sometime this week to take those down but the inside of the house looks like the Hallmark movie crew came in, decorated, filmed and abandoned ship.  It's a hot Christmas mess around here indeed!  

I've still got to find a ballgown for the Mardi Gras ball and we have things to order for Hubster to throw in the parade and finally I've got like 4 or 5 condo contracts to write up.   Yep, the holidays are over!

Well, hopefully tomorrow I'll have something more interesting to add to the conversation.  In the meantime everyone wash your hands, germs are everywhere!

Peace, Love & Toilet Paper