A real watermelon!

It is getting very hard to find watermelons with seeds nowadays....they have so much more flavor than the newer trendy seedless variety. I was so happy to find a seeded (that's what the label says) watermelon today....we won't talk about the strange looks I got nor the man that slowly backed away as I squealed with glee when I found a whole two bins of them!

Mmmm so sweet

Tempeh Tacos

We are getting creative with meals since our budget is so tight. I'm still catching up from breaking down on our Georgia trip and buying a new car....here is what's for dinner tonight. Tempeh tacos! It isn't noticeable that beef is missing because the tempeh takes on the look and texture of ground meat.

I crumbled the tempeh and cooked it with some water, cumin, chili powder, fresh chopped serrano and bell peppers, rehydrated sun dried tomatoes puréed with carrot and flax (to add some more hidden healthy bits), garlic, onion, oregano, salt and small dash of cayenne. I dry cooked the corn tortillas in a preheated - again - dry as in no oil - cast iron pan and folded them over while hot - saves lots of calories not having them fried! I am not fond of soggy taco shells, so I put fresh spinach leaves in first, then the  amazing tempeh mixture, then a few tiny dollops of non-fat plain greek yogurt, fresh diced tomato and some drops of sriracha.....so yummy and much healthier version of a taco that will be repeated in this home.

It's time to get serious. ..

Hello! So, after a trip to the doctor for what I was sure a broken foot....turned out to be plantar fasciitis and severe in one foot,  the scales show too slow progress. I'm trying various skinny recipes some of which I've made for years myself.  Here is an awesome breakfast for when I can't resist being bad and easily fools my palate ....protein pancakes.  I'm not sure who gets credit for the recipe since it's on many sites.  All I know is it's one of the best skinny things I've tried!

I added dried cranberry to the batter and sliced about a quarter of a banana then lightly drizzled honey over it all and sprinkled cinnamon on top. It was amazing! 

Happy 4th of July!

Tonight's dinner... porkchops stuffed with spinach, pine nuts, cheddar and balsamic. There was garlic roasted asparagus and hummus (homemade) stuffed red bell pepper. Yum!

Some of our local fireworks. They only ended with a small fire this year lol....ground very wet with it raining every day so the fire didn't get far

It's been a great day!

Update

We got a car...now to try and get things back to normal...still stressed

Update

We made it home, but the car did not....it was a traumatic evening for me and the girls and I am still extremely stressed and worried about what happens next. I have to find another car and fast. I have a rental for just a few days.

 We had some very scary characters stop (mustache painted on by what looked like eyeliner anyone? and telling us about people killed there just the night before but then later I could find nothing in the news about it?) and offer assistance that set off every warning bell in my body to the point I was ready to tell the girls to run screaming up to the interstate to get cars to stop. It was a very lonely exit with no buildings or people about and we were many hours from anyone we know. The hotel we went to was not much better. Some men saw me and my CHILDREN get dropped off by a tow truck with our broken car on it and asking 'hey ladies what room you in?' REALLY????????????

I have to go to work in about an hour. I hope I make it through this day. Deep breaths. Thoughts of butterflies daisies and unicorns.

hello from south carolina

Boy have things been busy around here! This is my new dining room...I had found some dark teal curtains to flank the lace, but still undecided...that is really all that is missing. I love this!

This is the birthday cake we made for Caela's 18th back in January...yeah I'm the parent of an adult now...scary! We had lots of fun with fondant...

Prom has happened...

Here is Caela showing off the high heels - she was about 6'2" with these lol

Here is Maiah with her shoes - these are very sparkly and have spikes on them that I wish showed up in pics! 

I didn't make these dresses - that seemed to be everyone's first question ... no time! We still have lots more to do in the next few months. I've done no sewing in awhile but have used creative juices in decorating. Have to get my small fixes in where I can! :-)

Fun with fondant and gel dye

Me and Caela have been working with fondant and gel dye for her birthday cake...at first I thought I had been a little too ambitious, but as we went along I was definitely having fun with this stuff!

I've never worked with fondant before...I've done the gum paste stuff years ago to make little things, but covering a cake was a new experience. Half of it was smooth and perfect and the other half will face the back! The zebra stripes hide most oops areas.

I can't wait to plan our next cake! Just what I need...another hobby =)

What a mess ... but so happy that coloring wiped right off of things

I still have little tweaks to do to it and not even sure exactly what all those will be, but I'm quite happy with the results so far!

I bought black sparkly candles for it...that much I know

The winter weather this weekend changed most the birthday plans, so this cake and a few balloons and streamers are just about it for now.

I also realized today I've been making aprons for everyone else and I desperately need one for myself. I have cake batter, icing, flour, sugar of different sorts, chocolate, fondant and gel dye on me. Sounds like maybe I need an industrial one!