Daily Journaling

I often think of how I wish I would remember to keep a simple journal of a just few things that happen in my life each day. When I was a little girl, my Dad had some old journals his father had kept, in which he had just recorded the mostly mundane things that had happened each day. Most days he wrote only a sentence or two, but he was consistent in writing daily. I loved glimpsing into his life from years before I was even born. I found it so fascinating. I do love looking back on old calendars and datebooks I have kept in the past. It occurred to me that I could do that here on this blog that nobody reads except me! Of course, my problem is that if I start writing, I can't stop at one or two sentences like my grandfather did. And I doubt I can be consistent like he was, either.

But I'm going to at least try to start writing about my days here for myself. I most certainly can't keep it down to one or two sentences, but I'm going to try to at least tell myself it's okay to do that. Maybe I can include a picture for each day, too. I think that would be cool. But my goal to at least write one or two sentences each day is really pretty simple, so maybe it's something I can stick to.

Today's entry is definitely more than that. HA!!

I will preface my daily entry by saying that I have been sick with RSV for over 2 weeks. It started during AJ & Hallie's visit from Washington State, which really sucked. They haven't been here since 2019 because of the pandemic. Of course, we saw them last summer for their wedding when we flew out to Washington, but it was nice having them here this year. We had such an enjoyable visit with them!! Unfortunately, my symptoms started half-way through their visit with the absolute worst sore throat I could ever remember having. In addition, I was fatigued, had a fever, body aches, a horrible headache - it was awful. I caught Covid in February (and I was not even that sick), and then was vaccinated in May. I honestly thought I had a so-called "breakthrough" infection. I went to Wellspan Urgent Care last Monday and was tested for Covid, which came back negative. The PA I saw was pretty sure I had RSV. Today was the first time for 2 weeks that I felt almost completely normal. No more fatigue, no aches or pains or headache. Just a lingering cough, but not too bad. 

So when I got up this morning, I was happy to realize that I felt pretty good, was not feeling achy, and not even coughing much. I bounded downstairs and grabbed a cup of coffee, then seasoned some pork loin with fajita seasoning and thew it in the oven at 225 degrees to cook all day for dinner. The house started to smell amazing!

For the first time in 2 weeks, I finally went out for a walk. Andy and I normally walk every day, between 3-6 miles, depending on the weather and the time we have. Most days it's 3 miles. Weekends we may walk up to 6 miles, although we probably haven't walked that far since last fall. I really missed walking when I was sick, but I just didn't have the energy. It felt great to be out! The weather was so nice, in the upper 60's, with no humidity!

We went out to the Heritage Rail Trail today and walked out 1.5 miles, then turned around and headed back to our starting point to give us 3 miles. I felt really good, did not get worn out or fatigued. So happy about that! Then we stopped by nearby Finley's for a beer and cheap pizza.

After we got home, I washed & put away everything in our dirty-clothes hamper (long overdue since I've been sick!). Then I chopped up some veggies to make pico de gallo and made some guacamole. Took the pork out of the oven and chopped it, then fried it in a skillet to get it a little crispy. Served pork tacos for dinner - corn tortillas, guacamole, pico de gallo, and shredded sharp cheddar. Yum!

After dinner, we visited our neighbors Tony & Tonya for "Whiskey Wednesday." They have a standing invitation, but we haven't been able to make it for a while - always something, including a very bad string of heavy rains every Wednesday for about 6 weeks! We had a nice visit sitting around the firepit and enjoying good conversation with them, their daughter-in-law, and a couple glasses of whiskey.

My picture, at top: not taken today, but a couple weeks ago. It is a view of my little garden that I started early this summer. I had no idea what I was doing, but it has just blossomed, and I'm so excited about it! This was a blank slate to start. The only thing that existed was the rosebush that is located beyond the left corner of this picture, unseen. All the rest was just...well, dirt. Mud. I randomly bought little pots of annuals I found at Lowe's, planted them, made the little path with stepping stones and decorative rocks, and threw down some mulch. It looked so pathetic when I started that I was embarrassed! LOL. My parents visited in July and gifted me that adorable little bird chair. And now, I can't believe it! My garden has grown. The marigolds have grown way bigger than I ever thought possible. Maybe it's obvious, but I am NOT a gardener. I look at my garden and I see a miracle! I love flowers, but I do not know how to make them grow, nor do I really know how to plant anything. I just feel so happy when I see these beautiful flowers!!!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I love tortilla soup! I've actually been craving it all summer, but kept telling myself I needed to wait for fall - or at least until we weren't getting an unbearably hot or sunny day. Well, thanks to Hurricane Ida, we are having heavy rainfalls today along with fall-like temps. I ran out to the store this morning before the rains got too crazy and picked up ingredients for chicken tortilla soup. It really hit the spot for all of us!

Ingredients for the soup:

3 TBSP butter

1 small yellow onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 1/2 cups cooked, seasoned chicken*, chopped

1 jalapeno, diced

1 can Rotel tomatoes

1 TBSP tomato paste

4 ounces cream cheese

3 cups chicken stock

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 can yellow corn, drained

1 1/2 tsp Knorr chicken bouillon powder

2 TBSP chili powder

1 tsp cumin

For the tortilla stips:

4 corn tortillas, cut into strips

Lard or oil for frying

Suggested toppings: 

Chopped cilantro

Shredded cheddar cheese (or Mexican cheese blend)

Diced avocado

Sliced green onions

Directions: 

1. Melt butter in a large cooking pot or Dutch oven, then add onion and garlic. Cook over medium-low heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Add chopped chicken, diced jalapeno, beans, corn, seasonings, and chicken bouillon powder. Give it a good stir.

2. Add cream cheese, tomato paste, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Then reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for at least 30 minutes.

3. While soup cooks, prepare tortilla strips. Place lard or oil in a skillet and heat for about 5 minutes. There should be about 1/2 inch of melted fat. Add tortilla strips in a single layer and cook on both sides until lightly browned. You will probably have to cook them in 2-3 batches, but they cook quickly so it won't take long. Move fried tortilla strips to a plate lined with paper towels to cool.

4. Serve soup with fried tortilla strips and other toppings as desired. Enjoy on a cool, rainy fall day.

*NOTE about the chicken. I wanted to buy a rotisserie chicken to use for the soup, but I was at the store too early and they didn't have any ready. Instead, I bought a package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and baked them. 

Seasoned Cooked Chicken

To bake chicken breasts for using in recipes like this one that call for cooked chicken, here is how I do it. This makes a total of about 6-7 cups chopped, seasoned chicken. 

Ingredients:

6 chicken breasts

4 TBSP butter

1/2 cup dry white wine, like pinot grigio

Lawry's Seasoned Salt

Pepper

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, trim fat off chicken breasts and cut each breast in half (they are usually so big, and cutting them in half helps them to cook faster).

3. Place half of the melted butter in a 9x13-inch glass baking dish. Lay the chicken in the melted butter and sprinkle generously with Lawry's seasoned salt and pepper. Turn chicken over, seasoned side down. Pour the white wine over all the chicken breasts. Pour the remaining 2 TBSP melted butter over the chicken. Season with seasoned salt and pepper.

4. Cover tightly with foil and cut a couple of small slits in the middle of the foil to vent. Place in oven and bake for 1 hour. Remove from oven and allow to cool, leaving foil on the pan, for about 15 minutes at room temperature. Chop or shred to add to dishes calling for cooked chicken. You can also use the liquid left in the pan for broth in your recipe. It's delicious!

Dorito Pie

I grew up in Texas and Frito Pie is one of my favorite dishes. It's so easy to make and very kid-friendly. I have been craving Frito Pie for a while and decided that's what we would have for dinner tonight. The problem is, when we received our grocery delivery this morning, the Fritos were missing!! 😭 

But, we had a bag of nacho cheese Doritos, so I thought, why not just try making Dorito Pie instead? So that is what I did. I don't really have a "recipe" for Frito Pie, but it basically crushed Fritos on the bottom of a dish, a layer of chili con carne, more Fritos on top, sprinkled with cheese, and then baked until the cheese melts. So I did the same thing with this Dorito Pie, but I added some sour cream to the chili to give it some extra creaminess. I was very pleased with how this recipe turned out and will definitely make it again! It would make a great covered dish to take to a potluck, too. If you don't like things spicy, omit the cayenne pepper and use mild salsa.

DORITO PIE

1 lb. hamburger

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

1/4 cup chili powder

2 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)

Salt & pepper to taste

1 cup salsa (I used hot)

1 4-ounce can chopped green chilies

1 8-ounce can tomato sauce

1 cup sour cream

1 bag nacho cheese flavored Doritos

2 cups shredded taco cheese (or cheddar)

1. Heat oven to 375. Prepare a 9x13-inch baking dish by spraying with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Cook hamburger, onion, and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat, breaking up meat and stirring until browned. Drain grease and return to skillet.

3.  Season cooked hamburger with chili powder, cumin, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Mix well.

4.  Add salsa, green chilies, and tomato sauce; stir well. Simmer over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in sour cream.

5. Crush Doritos and then open bag. Spread 1/2 of the crushed Doritos evenly over the bottom of the baking dish. Spoon chili over Doritos, then top with remaining Doritos. Sprinkle with shredded cheese.

6.  Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted. Serve with fresh toppings on the side like shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, and sliced jalapenos. Enjoy!

Cheesy Potato Cakes

Last night, I made salisbury steak and we had about a cup of mashed potatoes left. So this morning, I made some yummy potato cakes with the leftovers. So good and makes a nice little breakfast. Or snack, or side dish. Because you know, potatoes. I love them.

Here's how I did it:

In a mixing bowl, mix leftover mashed potatoes (I had 1 cup) with a TBSP flour, a handful of shredded cheddar cheese, 1 egg white, and some Lawry's seasoned salt. Set aside.

Melt 1 TBSP ghee in skillet. Add a little diced yellow onion (about 1/4 of an onion) and cook over medium-low heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Add 1 clove of minced garlic and cook an additional 2 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic.

Add the sauteed onion and garlic to potato mixture and mix well.

Add 2 TBSP of ghee to the skillet, increase heat to medium, and allow the ghee to heat up for a minute or two.

Shape potato mixture into little cakes and fry in ghee, each side about 2-3 minutes, until golden brown and heated through. The outsides will be crispy and the insides fluffy. Soooo good, ENJOY! 

NOTE: You can leave the cheese out if you want to go dairy-free! They will still be delicious! 

Delicious Deviled Eggs

This is a very simple, basic recipe for deviled eggs - but a little "secret" ingredient just makes them stand out above the rest: Lawry's Seasoned Salt!! I'm not even kidding, and no, I'm not getting any compensation from Lawry's, lol - I WISH! 

Ingredients:

8 eggs, hard-boiled

1 cup mayonnaise

1 tsp yellow mustard

1/2 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 TBSP dill pickle relish

Paprika

Dried parsley

Directions:

1. Slice eggs lengthwise in half. Remove yolks and place in a bowl. Lay out egg white halves in a serving dish.

2. Use an electric mixer to combine egg yolks, mustard, seasoned salt, and pickle relish.

3. Spoon egg yolk mixture into the egg white halves.

4.  Sprinkle lightly with paprika and dried parsley.

5. Cover and chill for 2 hours before serving.

Fish Tacos

I've posted about making fish tacos before, but that was because I wanted to share how I make cilantro-lime coleslaw, which tastes great on fish tacos. But tonight, I want to post my recipe for the fish in fish tacos. It's not really a recipe I guess, but just how I make them. You can be really flexible.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. mild tasting fish 
• 1/2 stick butter, melted and divided
• Coarse Kosher salt
• Coarse-ground black pepper
• Old Bay or Cajun seasoning
• 1/2 lime

You can use any kind of mild tasting fish. I've used haddock, tilapia, and cod. I usually buy frozen and then thaw the fish out by running each filet under cool tap water. Then I lay them on paper towels to dry.

Heat the oven to 425*F. While the oven heats, line a large cookie sheet with foil. Cut fish filets into smaller pieces to fit tacos. I usually cut each fish filet into four pieces.

Lay fish on the foil-lined cookie sheet in a single layer. Drizzle half of the melted butter over all the fish. Then sprinkle generously with seasoning. I like to use Kosher salt, coarse-ground black pepper, and either Cajun seasoning or Old Bay.

Place fish in preheated oven and bake for about 12-15 minutes, until it is cooked through and easily flakes with a fork. Remove from oven and drizzle with remaining melted butter. Squeeze half of a lime over the fish.

Serve with in warm corn tortillas and whatever fillings you like!

Cinco de Mayo Low-Carb Taco Pizza

Cinco de Mayo is a great excuse to eat Mexican food!! Or, at least Mexican-inspired food. Or (my favorite), Tex-Mex food. Heh. (I grew up in San Antonio!!)

This Cinco de Mayo, I made taco salad. It was "keto style" but absolutely delicious and we were definitely not deprived. All I do is make taco meat, add all the "toppings," but just leave out the tortilla chips (or tortilla shells, whatever!), beans, and/or rice (we do not miss it at all!).

I made lots of taco salad. Lots. Ahem, too much. 

So, I wanted to do something with the leftover taco stuff so we wouldn't have to eat the same exact taco salad 3 times in a row (it was delicious, but, dinner, lunch...and then dinner again? LOL)

First of all, I preheated my oven to 425*F, and used this low-carb pizza crust recipe. (My go-to recipe!) 

I rolled the crust out between two sheets of parchment paper, then removed the top sheet. After pricking the dough with a fork, and sprinkling it generously with garlic salt, I used a pizza paddle to transfer the crust with the bottom sheet of parchment paper to the preheated pizza stone in my oven, and baked it for about 8 minutes, checking on it half-way and puncturing any bubbles with a fork.

Then I added the toppings. I used my leftover taco meat mixed with 1/2 a jar of Pace picante sauce to make it more....well, "saucy." I spread that over my (already) baked low-carb pizza crust.  Then I added shredded cheeses: Cheddar, Mozzarella, and Parmesan. (No measurements--just eyeball it!)

I baked it for about 5 more minutes, until top cheeses were melted. 

After removing it from the oven, I allowed it to sit and cool for about 5 minutes. Then I added fresh toppings (because this was a "taco" pizza!): lettuce, chopped tomatoes, sliced green onion, sliced  jalapenos, etc.  Use whatever you love for tacos. I would have added fresh chopped cilantro, but I didn't have any. 

I drizzled it with thinned-out sour cream because we all love sour cream! (Just whisk in a little cold water to sour cream until it is at a "drizzling" consistency!)

As usual, 2 slices of pizza made with low-carb crust filled me up. If it were "regular" crust, I could eat at least half of an entire pizza! LOL

Creamy Cilantro-Lime Coleslaw

Another Lenten Friday, and I am making fish tacos! This is one of my family's favorite dishes, and they taste so good with my creamy cilantro-lime coleslaw. We love to put other goodies in our fish tacos too, but they would taste perfectly fine if the only addition were this coleslaw!

Ingredients:

½ bag green & purple coleslaw mix

¼ cup diced purple onion

2 jalapeno peppers, diced

½ cup chopped cilantro

1 TBSP mayonnaise

½ cup sour cream

Juice from 1 lime

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Whisk mayonnaise, sour cream, lime juice, salt, and pepper until smooth. Stir in all other ingredients. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to your liking. 

Chill for 1-2 hours (or more) before serving.

Tastes great in fish tacos!!!

Our favorite additions for fish tacos (besides coleslaw):

Diced tomatoes

Sliced jalapenos

Diced purple onion

Sour cream, thinned with a little cold water

Cojito cheese

Sliced avocado

Suisse Mocha

I used to love Suisse Mocha and it was a regular afternoon treat for me when my kids were little and napping. I haven't bought it in years - I'm not even sure they make it anymore. But it's snowing again today, and it suddenly popped into my mind how good a cup of Suisse Mocha would be on a cold, snowy day. So I created something with ingredients I had on hand (using no sugar, keeping it low-carb) and it tastes how I remember it. I'm not sure if my memory is skewed or not, but I really like what I came up with. It's very similar to my Keto Mocha that I posted about a couple weeks ago, but it uses more cream and has a more mellow flavor. I also used Swerve rather than liquid Stevia, which I think works better. 

2/3 cup prepared coffee (I still had some leftover in the coffeepot from this morning)

1/3 cup heavy cream

1 tsp cocoa powder (I use Hershey's)

1 TBSP Swerve powdered sweetener*

2 dashes vanilla extract

1. Place coffee, cream, and cocoa powder in a large mug and whisk until blended. Heat in microwave for 60-90 seconds, until hot. (Or, combine in a small saucepan and heat on stovetop.)
2. Whisk in vanilla and sweetener. Enjoy!

*This is my favorite low-carb sweetener. The powdered kind dissolves easier than the granulated kind. Use whatever sweetener is your favorite.

Potato Soup for Lent (Vegetarian)

For Ash Wednesday, I really wanted to serve potato soup for dinner, but did not want to use chicken broth because of our Ash Wednesday fast from meat. I also did not want to make potato-cheese soup because we were having grilled cheese sandwiches along with the soup, and that would just be cheese overload. Not that there's anything wrong with that...

I made my own homemade vegetable broth for the first time ever, and it turned out surprisingly good. It worked perfectly to make a hearty, robust tasting potato soup. I plan on keeping veggie broth on hand throughout Lent to use in various recipes that I would otherwise use chicken or beef broth.

Potato Soup - Vegetarian, for Lent

4 potatoes, peeled and chopped

4 TBSP butter

2 medium stalks celery, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 cups strong, homemade vegetable broth*

1 cup heavy whipping cream

Salt & pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Place peeled, chopped potatoes in a medium saucepan and fill with water. Bring to boil over high heat; then, reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until potatoes are tender. Drain and set aside.
2. In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add celery, carrots, onion, and garlic. Stir and saute until vegetables caramelize, about 10-15 minutes.
   
3. Add drained potatoes and saute for about 5 minutes. Stir in vegetable broth, heavy cream, salt, and pepper. Use a potato masher to partially mash potatoes and vegetables.
4. Ladle half the soup into a blender and puree until smooth. Add pureed soup back into remaining soup. Heat thoroughly. Can leave on warm stove burner if not serving immediately. 
   
   
   

*Homemade vegetable broth: Place nonstarchy vegetables such as bell peppers, celery, carrots, garlic, and onions, in a big pot and cover vegetables with water (only about 1/4-1/2 inch over the top of the vegetables). Use all of the parts of the vegetable - skins, leaves, stems, etc. No need to chop the vegetables. Add plenty of salt, some pepper (or peppercorns), dried parsley (or fresh, if you have it), and 1 or 2 bay leaves. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour. Allow to cool, then strain broth into a storage jar and discard cooked vegetables.

Instant Pot Beef Stew

I love my Instant Pot and can't believe how easy it is to use. My daughter gave it to me for my birthday in 2019 and I neglected it for over a year, thinking it would be complicated and dangerous! Finally, she came over and gave me some "Instant Pot lessons." I've been using it several times a week ever since. 

Andy and I went out for a walk today through the neighborhood. Everything is still covered in snow, but the streets, driveways, and sidewalks have all been cleared. It was very peaceful and also very cold! Before we left, I made beef stew in my Instant Pot and it kept warm while we were out. Normally I do my beef stew in the oven and it has to cook for about 3 hours to get the meat tender enough. Now I can do it in my Instant Pot in less than an hour. 

You can't beat a steaming bowl of hearty beef stew after coming inside from the cold! 

Ingredients

2 lbs beef stew meat, cut into bite-size pieces

1 cup cut-up frozen green beans

1 cup sliced frozen carrots

2 celery stalks, diced

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 small potatoes, diced

4 large white mushrooms, roughly chopped

1 cup dry red wine (I used merlot)

1 ¼ cups beef bone broth

1 small can (6 ounces) tomato paste

2 TBSP dried parsley

¼ tsp dried rosemary leaves

½ tsp dried thyme leaves

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Directions

1. Place beef and vegetables in Instant Pot.
   
   
2. In a small bowl, whisk together wine, broth, tomato paste, and spices. Pour over beef and vegetables and stir to mix.
   
   
3. Close and set manually for 35 minutes. Allow to release naturally for 15 minutes.

Roasted Cauliflower

I'm really not a cauliflower fan, but I can eat it if it's covered in cheese, or mashed up and smothered in roast beef and gravy. But I found another delicious way of eating it and it's really easy. 

Just made this to add to a casserole I'm going to make later tonight and found myself munching on it like a snack - which is weird because I would never just munch on cauliflower or consider it a snack. But this is actually tasty.

I just chopped up a head of cauliflower, doused it in about 5 TBSP of melted Kerrygold butter, sprinkled it with garlic salt, onion powder, and paprika, and then baked it at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Then I turned the oven to broil and broiled it for about 3 additional minutes, until some of the pieces started to brown. Yummy!

A Winter Storm

My word, the last post I wrote was about being distracted, and then I went and forgot all about my blog for a few days.

The view from my front door, two hours after shoveling my walkway.

Today, we are in the middle of a beautiful winter storm. The snow is falling in huge flakes, which builds up fast. Everything is bright and white and quiet. It started yesterday, and I shoveled a couple of times to try to keep ahead of it. Then I woke up to a seamless white blanket covering our entire yard and street this morning. The snow had stopped even though the weather channel was saying it was still snowing. I went out to shovel again and some of my neighbors had the same idea. We've been so isolated with winter and COVID invading everyone's lives, and I was excited just to see them out and being able to wave and yell hello. 

The only sounds I could hear were shovels scraping throughout our neighborhood. I actually enjoy shoveling. I find it peaceful and satisfying, and love that it's a full-body workout. It took me about an hour to shovel our huge driveway. Toward the end, one of my neighbors came over and said, "I'm going to help you finish!" We kept our 6-feet distance, but worked together on my driveway and had good conversation. We talked about how we both enjoy shoveling snow, we talked about our kids, we talked about work, and of course, we talked about COVID. It was so nice to spend that time with her. I have really missed seeing friends. I've missed in-person conversation and human contact. I am very thankful I have my husband and grown kids and grandkids, whom we continue to see, but I miss being outside of our tiny little bubble. 

When I came inside, I warmed up with a little keto mocha treat. Then the snow started falling again. About two hours after all that shoveling, my driveway and walk way to the front door was completely covered with snow again. I guess I'll get another workout in later!

Here's how I threw my keto mocha together. I loved it.

Keto Mocha

1 cup coffee

1 tsp cocoa powder

2 TBSP heavy cream 

1-2 dashes Better Stevia (liquid)

1 dash vanilla extract

Heat coffee and heavy cream in the microwave or stovetop. Then place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth and creamy. 

Distracted

I am so distracted these days. When I was young, I managed to run a smooth household as a practically single mom to 4 kids (since Andy was out of town nearly every single week). I kept the house clean and organized, assigned the kids chores, and homeschooled all of them. I planned meals, I planned lessons, I shopped, I read, I exercised, I participated in homeschool co-op groups, I sat down on the floor and played with them. I even got up at the crack of dawn before they were awake so I could have a time of quiet prayer and Scripture reading. I made hot breakfasts every morning and hot lunches every afternoon between teaching. When I converted to Catholicism, I started attending daily mass on top of all that. Honestly, I don't know how I did it. 

My "prayer closet"

Now I barely get my old sleepy self out of bed by 6:00 AM to grab some coffee, read, and pray, but I find myself doing 47 different things the first hour without even cracking open the devotion book I intended to read. 

It goes something like this: I head to the kitchen to get my coffee, go to my guest room (which is my "prayer closet" when we don't have guests), and pull out my devotion book and prayer journal. Then my phone catches my eye and I wonder what my sleep score is (I use a Fitbit), so I check it. Then I decide I'll play the daily puzzle on WordScapes, which will "only" take a minute. I finish the puzzle and remind myself that I need to have my reading and prayer time now, but that triggers me to remember Facebook and how I should really check to see if any of my friends have posted any prayer requests overnight. Thirty minutes later, I realize I've been consumed by Facebook, so I close it and finally pick up my devotion book I am reading that day, which causes me to gaze at my delicious collection of spiritual books I have on my desk, each one with a lovely Saint bookmark somewhere in the middle because I can't seem to finish a book these days. So, of course, I pick one up to see where I left off...

When I finally get the self-discipline to open my devotional, I realize my coffee cup is empty and well, I need coffee when I read, right? Before I know it a couple of hours have flown by and I have not accomplished much at all. I feel I should be a better, more focused, more mature person at my age, but sometimes I feel like I have made no progress at all in the last 10 or 15 years. Time is marching on. I am not getting any younger, and what am I going to say to my Lord God after I die and He confronts me with the question of how I spent my time on this earth?

I lack self-discipline. I can blame it on distraction, but I make a choice to be distracted. This is something I need to pray about and work on. With God's grace, I know I can overcome it. 

Holy Spirit, come and dwell in me. Give me self-discipline to do the right thing and spend my time wisely.

Brisket

I made brisket yesterday for Patrick's birthday. It was soooo good - probably the best brisket I've ever made. That might be because this time our brisket came from a local family farm and not the grocery store. I don't know why we don't have brisket more often, it is so delicious. Maybe because it's just so dang expensive. But it's completely worth it. I could just eat a plate full of brisket and nothing else. Who needs sides?

I need to write down how to do it because I am always forgetting. This is how my mom made it. She taught my friend how to make it, and I have had to email her more than once to ask, "How do you make my mom's brisket?" Ha. I shouldn't forget because it is about as simple as it could possibly be.

Ingredients:

• Brisket, any size
• Fiesta brand fajita seasoning
• Water

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 225 degrees F.  
2. Place brisket, fat side down, in a baking pan and sprinkle generously with Fiesta brand fajita seasoning. Use tongs to hold the brisket on the sides and be sure to sprinkle the sides too. You can also rub the seasoning into the beef. 
3. Now flip the brisket so the fat side is up and sprinkle that side. You will be cooking the brisket fat side up so the fat juices will melt and drip into the meat.
4. Pour water into the pan so the brisket is sitting in about ½ inch of water.
5. Cover the pan tightly with foil. 
6. Bake for at 225 degrees for at least 1 hour per pound of brisket. A little longer doesn't hurt. I made a 4-pound brisket yesterday and set the timer for 4 hours. You can also bake it overnight at 200 degrees. Baste the brisket with the pan juices occasionally. You can turn the oven up during the last hour or so of cooking to speed things along. I made baked mac & cheese yesterday and turned the oven up to 400 for the last half-hour of cooking so that I could bake the macaroni in the oven with the brisket.
7. Remove brisket from pan, place on a cutting board, and trim off any large pieces of fat. Now slice the brisket against the grain, or chop brisket for sandwiches.
8. Transfer sliced brisket to a serving platter and pour a little of the pan juices on top. Serve with your favorite barbecue sauce, warmed. If you are serving chopped brisket, then mix it with a little barbecue sauce for serving.

It is actually delicious with no sauce, and it's zero carbs, of course!

Chaffleburger!

Okay, this time I didn't lose my phone and I took a picture! I made chaffles for lunch and used them for buns. They were so good - soft, fluffy. Fooled myself into thinking I was actually eating a bun. Chaffles are just eggs and mozzarella cheese mixed together and and fried in a waffle maker. (1 egg + 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella for 2 chaffles) And they are ZERO carbs!! I just got myself a mini Dash waffle maker from Amazon and I love it!

Andy had a chicken salad sandwich with his chaffles and I had a hamburger with alllllll the fixin's: lettuce, tomatoes, onions, dill pickles, mayonnaise, mustard, and sugar-free ketchup.

Chaffles are pretty delicious on their own too. Here's a chaffle smothered in melted butter and sugar-free maple syrup. The taste and texture is incredibly similar to real, fluffy waffles. You'd never guess you're eating egg and cheese. So yummy!

Pizza

I wish I had taken a picture. 

Edited 2/2/21: I made another pizza and here's the picture.

Keto Veggie Pizza: toppings are onions, peppers, mushrooms, and black olives. Mozzarella and cheddar cheese, and Rao's Pizza Sauce.

Last night, we had movie night with the girls and ordered pizza for them. I made a the (low-carb) Fathead pepperoni pizza for me and Andy that I've been making for years. But this time instead of shaping it with my hands, I put parchment paper over the top and rolled it out as thin as I could. Of course, this made the dough spread out much more than usual, so I placed a pizza pan over the top of the dough and cut around it with a sharp knife so it would make a perfectly shaped pizza that fit perfectly in the pan.

When it was all done, I had such a beautiful looking pizza! It seriously looked like a takeout pizza. I was going to take a picture, but I couldn't find my phone at the time (a phenomenon that occurs several times a day) and I was too hungry to look for it. Not only was it a gorgeous pizza it was sooooo delicious!! Better than ever before. The crust was much thinner than usual and reminded me of that wonderful greasy New York City pizza that you can only find in...well, New York City. I definitely want to make it this way again, so I'm writing it down. And next time I do I am taking a picture and adding it to this post. I will be sure to find my phone before I put the pizza in the oven.

There are so many "Fathead pizza" recipes out there and each one is a little different from the other, so here's the one I've been making for so many years that I think is perfect.  (Along with my new instructions for making a thinner crust and perfect circle-shaped pizza.)

For the crust:

• 1½ cups shredded mozzarella
• ¾ cup almond flour
• 2 TBSP cream cheese
• 1 egg
• ⅛ tsp xanthan gum
• Garlic salt

Toppings:

• Thick pizza sauce (I used Rao's last night - it is probably the best-tasting jarred pizza sauce you can buy and it happens to be low-carb)
• Mozzarella cheese, shredded
• Extra-sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• Parmesan cheese, grated 
• Lots of pepperoni slices
• Italian seasoning
• Tools: parchment paper, pizza stone, pizza paddle, round pizza pan, rolling pin

Directions:

1. Place pizza stone on bottom rack of oven and preheat oven to 425*F.
2. Put mozzarella & cream cheese in a medium size glass bowl. Microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring at each interval, until cheese is completely melted and mixed well. 1½ minutes total is usually sufficient.
3. Beat egg and xanthan gum together in a small bowl. Add to cheese mixture. Add almond flour and mix with a wooden spoon until it comes together and makes a dough.
4. With wet hands, work the dough to mix well.
5. Make into a ball and place on parchment paper. Put another piece of parchment paper on top and roll out to make a thin crust. Peel away the top sheet of parchment paper. (Keep the pizza on the bottom piece of parchment paper for baking.)
6. Place a pizza pan over the top of the dough and use a sharp knife to cut around the pan to make a perfectly shaped circle.
7. Dock crust all over (use a fork) and sprinkle generously with garlic salt.
8. Use a pizza paddle to transfer the pizza crust to the oven. Place pizza (keeping it on the parchment paper) on top of the preheated pizza stone. 
9. Bake for 8-12 minutes, until starting to turn golden brown. (The time varies for me, so keep your eye on it.)
10. Use pizza paddle to remove from oven. Top with sauce, cheeses, and pepperoni. Sprinkle lightly with Italian seasoning. Return to oven and bake until sauce bubbles and cheese starts to brown, about 5 minutes.
11. Remove from oven, transfer to a pizza pan for serving, and allow to cool for 3-4 minutes before slicing.

I like to sprinkle more Parmesan cheese and some red pepper flakes on mine before serving. 

This really tastes so close to the "real thing." I have no more cravings for pizza when I make this crust!

Changes

It's been a long time since I've blogged regularly. In fact, I completely forgot about this blog. I tried my hand at blogging under my own domain for a few years, but it started stressing me out. I was spending way too much time writing for it and perfecting it and thinking about what to blog next and trying to organize it. And I worried way too much about whether my posts were any good. I missed just blogging for myself because I enjoyed it. I decided to stop paying for it. I've missed blogging and was thrilled to discover my old, FREE blog is still up. So, at least for now, I am going to blog again - just for fun, just a way of journaling for my future self.

I've been thinking about all the changes since my last posts here in 2014:

• Andy retired from the Air Force after 30 years of service and we moved to Pennsylvania. He now works in HR at the Navy Depot.
  
  
• Whitney, John & the grands all moved to Pennsylvania with us! They live about 20 minutes away from us. It's great and we see them often!
  
  
• River and Austen have transformed from toddlers to big kids, and we have 2 more beautiful grandchildren.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• We finally bought a house with a swimming pool, something we have always wanted! We love spending our summers grilling out back and cooling off in our pool. We live on a cul-de-sac and have the best neighbors. We all get together often for playing cornhole or watching football. Of course, with the resurgence of stupid COVID right now we haven't been able to do much lately, but hopefully that will change soon.
  
  
  
  
  
  

• AJ graduated from CWU with a degree in business, works a state job and got married! He and his wife Hallie live in Washington.
  
  
• Sky graduated from college with a degree in nursing. She works as an RN in a hospital and  lives with us. She has a serious boyfriend named Patrick who is over here often. We consider him a part of the family.
  
  
• Emma graduated from high school in 2019 and is pursuing a degree in Art Education.
  
  
• My sweet buddy Luke died shortly after we moved here. I was devastated and missed him following me around everywhere. We adopted another goofball golden retriever puppy in December 2016 and named him Sammy. Then around Thanksgiving 2019 we adopted a little pitbull-beagle mix that our friends found wandering around in a Walmart parking lot. We named him Ollie. He is super cute and sweet, but much more serious than Sammy. I totally believe golden retrievers are the goofiest of all dog breeds.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• While Emma was still in high school, I started working in the cafeteria as a bonafide lunch lady! It was a busy job with fun coworkers that kept me moving around. The days went by super fast. But I wanted more freedom so I could travel with Andy when he went on business trips. So I quit, and started volunteering once a week. I got to travel to Hawaii with him and right after we came back COVID happened. So Andy hasn't had any work travel since last February. But Hawaii was AMAZING!!!
  
  
  
  
  
  
• I spent a semester training to become a volunteer CASA (court-appointed special advocate for a foster child) and was certified in December 2016. I have worked on two cases since.
  
  
• Like everyone else, I am sick and tired of COVID. Uggghhh

Bedtime & Birthday

I've been going to bed way too late recently. I do this in waves (fighting my nightowl tendencies). During the summer and early fall, I was actually making myself get into bed no later than 9:00 PM, just reading with a yellow-toned lightbulb in my lamp, and avoiding any electronics. That worked like a charm and I usually fell asleep before 10:00. I would usually wake up naturally at 5:00 AM without even trying. But then Andy and I went to Texas in October for my brother's wedding, and when we got home we had to self-quarantine for 2 weeks. As soon as our 2 weeks was up, the stupid COVID virus got crazy here in Pennsylvania, so we couldn't do anything but stay home to avoid it. Andy was already working from home, and I postponed going back to my volunteer lunch lady job indefinitely. I'm also a CASA volunteer* and have had to visit my foster child and attend court through Zoom for the last 3 months. We have our groceries delivered and shop Amazon Prime. We don't go anywhere. We do go out for daily walks regardless of the weather - it is the only thing keeping me somewhat sane right now. We also attend Sunday mass in the parking lot, streamed through the radio. Father brings the Eucharist out to our car for us. We appreciate him so much. The only people we have really seen since October has been our own kids who live in PA and the grandkids. Being "stuck at home," Andy and I started bingeing on some TV shows: The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead, and Vikings. (I was so surprised how good TWD is, I was not expecting that.) Now after we've gotten everything done for the day, we sit down in the living room by the fireplace and watch these shows until we're all droopy eyed. I've been falling into bed between 11:00 and midnight. It's such a bad habit. So anyway, I'm blaming it on coronavirus. I'm so sick of it.

Yesterday was Andy's birthday and I made carnitas tacos for dinner and celebrated with an easy ice cream cake that I made. I made the pork in the Instant Pot in the morning, shredded it and kept it warm during the day while I got other stuff done. Then I spread it out on a baking sheet and crisped it up under the broiler before serving. It turned out really good!

We eat low-carb most of the time now days, but I'm not so strict that we never eat sugar or carbs on special occasions. I try not to get carried away when we indulge because carbs are so addicting and they make me tired and hungry and fat, so I'm back to normal today. Since Whitney has a newborn, we took the cake over to her house so we could celebrate with the grandkids.

We have 4 grandkids now. River is 11 (how did that even happen), Austen is 9, Chase is 6, and Wilder was born in November.

Then we came home and watched two Vikings shows and went to bed way too late. Again.

*CASA - court-appointed special advocate for a foster child. 

Restless Sleep

I didn't sleep well last night....well, I never seem to sleep well but last night was worse than normal. I kept waking up and having weird dreams that I can't remember. I was hot and kicked off my blankets, then I was cold and shivering, and covered up to my chin. This happened over and over.

But one thing happened that was especially strange and I remember it well. I had a dream in which I started hearing a whooshing sound. I use a fan at night for "white noise," and as I was sleeping, I was aware that I was asleep - or maybe I wasn't? I wondered what the whooshing was, and I could hear it very distinctly over the sound of my fan. Then I heard whispering. It sounded like two people, but I couldn't tell. I couldn't hear what they were saying. I looked across my dark room and saw the curtains part and the outline of faces looking into my room. They appeared to be standing outside my window, and continued whispering. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but their tones seemed mocking toward me. Then I thought, "That can't be real because I'm on the second floor of the house, and anyway, my window is not open so no one can part my curtains like that." I continued to watch them, and started to feel fearful. I knew I was dreaming but I was very aware of it. It was like I was awake yet dreaming at the same time. I tried to call out, "Who are you? What do you want?" But I was paralyzed. I couldn't make a sound and could not open my mouth to speak. I tried to open my eyes and I couldn't move. I don't know how long I lay there trying to open my eyes and mouth and couldn't budge, but it seemed like a long time. Finally I managed to slowly open my eyes. Everything was normal. The curtains were closed and I only heard the sound of my fan. I looked at the clock and it was just a few minutes past 3:00 AM. 

I don't know what to make of it all. Usually I forget my dreams by the time morning comes, but this one remains very clear in my mind.