Happy Mother's Day........Day One

Although a day early, the Mother's Day celebration for my mom was today. Since we live in Cookeville, she lives in Hermitage and her mom lives in Columbia (not the country).....she would be construed as the epicenter of the universe of the moms in our family. Since she would want to spend time with her mom on Mother's Day, we hatched a lunch/shopping trip for us for today. Needless to say this weighed heavier on the shopping trip than lunch.
We started our expedition at O'Charleys in Lebanon, TN around 12ish. Too many rolls and a cup of loaded bake potato soup later.......well......I was contemplating what would have to be done to burn off said 50,000 calories! Since I had lifted weights in the a.m. today for biceps/triceps/abs I chalked it up to time spent and chowed down!!!!
We hit the outlet mall in Lebanon around one in the afternoon. Gap, Ralph Lauren, Bass, Carter's, Children's Place, Easy Spirit, Gymboree, Coach, Nike Outlet and last but not least....Tommy Hilfiger. Please pay attention to the latter toward the end of the story.
My, oh my do I love shopping. Let me clarify....I love to shop and I work damn hard to afford to do it therefore.....no regrets.
Multiple outfits and a pair of shoes later (this included several outfits for the kids which they do not need) I was complete! Now, let us reflect back to the Hilfiger thing. As most of my closest friends know, I HATE TOMMY HILFIGER! I really cannot expand as to why but my reasons are valid to me and that is all that matters. That being said....they had the cutest short/shirt set in said store today and I fell in love. I bought it.....but.....in my defense.....the shorts do not have any type of demarcation as to what brand they are.......and ....the shirt has a teeny tiny Hilfiger emblem on the bottom left of it. I am telling you, one must look to see. Therefore, I purchased!
Multiple outfits for the kids, 2 pairs of pants for me, the Hilfiger short/shirt (must say looks damn good on me), and the official 40th pair of shoes in my closet which I love,dearly. I am complete!!

Friday Fill Ins

Another rainy day in the thriving metropolis of Cookeville. I started my morning bright and cheery at 4:00 a.m. This is when the weather radio belted out it's best alarm stating there was a Thunderstorm Watch. Counting in my head 5...4...3...2...1... Like magic...Michael jumps in the bed. I tell you, that kid's response to the weather radio is Pavlov's theory at its finest. I calmed him down and went back to sleep. At 5:30, the 'time to get up' alarm went off and here comes Marshall. So, here I sit (well I was lying down) at 5:30 in the morning with my children and a lovely thunderstorm. I love starting my day with chaos....although it was controlled.

1. Apples are to oranges as I am not going to fill in this one. I am now having GRE Post Traumatic Stress Disorder!!!

2. There are only two guarantees in life. Death and Taxes and that's all I have to say about that.

3. I think I hear thunder! Surely not with the drought we are having in Middle Tennessee (heavy sarcasm)

4. It is a shame the respect that has been lost for the American flag.

5. Do what you want to do, but keep me out of it.

6. Timmy was riding his tricycle and behind him was a Radio Flyer wagon; in the wagon was a bucket filled with earthworms and grubs.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to having no plans, tomorrow my plans include having lunch with my mom and Sunday, I want to have no plans!!

I Am Getting Soft And I Am Mad About It

One of my closest friends says...."You have to get mad to do it!" I am speaking of me getting soft. Not mentally or emotionally but physically. For the past few months I have been less than dedicated to exercise. This is totally opposite of how I used to be. Before I was pregnant with Marshall, I worked out every day at lunch. I was 16% body fat and that was the sole reason as to why it took me so long to get pregnant with said child. This was late 2005 and I have just not been able to get into the "regular" groove again. It would be described as "hit and miss" with more miss than hit!
Now, I am not saying I am fat or overweight...far from it. I am in the lower end of my 'accepted' weight for my height and I am a consistent size 6. But, as I tell my patients.....just because the scale measures health, doesn't mean health. The fact is I am soft and bathing suit season is...what...2 and a half weeks away? I look like hell on wheels and the spray tan is only half way helping! I equate my journey to someone trying to quit smoking. They usually fail several times before they succeed. Well, this is like my THIRD time to blog about seriously trying to get in shape. As they say, third time is a charm so I am truly going for it. I am not going to blog daily or even weekly for that matter about my work out regimen. This is more of a personal battle that must be won. I am DAMN mad about it therefore I know I will succeed. Well, that and I have downloaded some awesome music on my iPod. Either way...motivation is motivation...I just hope I don't go deaf during the process.

Showing Off The Flower Garden

I was wanting to wait and show off all the hard work from earlier this Spring. I was waiting for my Crepe Myrtles to bloom but I have grown impatient. I figured if I continued to wait until then, my weigelas would be finished with their blooming season and no one would be able to appreciate how cool they are. So here are the pics from the back of the house flower bed. They are in semi-order starting at the west (garage side) of the house and ending at the east (basement side) of the house. I know the total effect will be lost in the pictures but here we go anyway. I hope you all enjoy them.

Marshall and I Switched Shirts

I know this is a strange heading to a blog post but this was the phrase uttered by my eldest yesterday. Hearing your child say "Hey look, Marshall and I switched shirts", is not necessarily weird in its own right. That is if your children are spaced apart the usual 2-3 years. But when your boys are 6.2 years apart, it is a little strange. Marshall thought this was hilarious and Michael looked like.....well......it was a little disconcerting to say the least! I added a picture for your viewing pleasure.
Other than that (pretty sad that it was the most exciting thing that has happened lately) nothing new. Other than contemplating an ark building project, not a whole lot going on. I was able to clean up my iPod yesterday which gave me quite a feeling of accomplishment. It has become an hourly task to talk myself out of buying an iPod touch. Especially when my works just fine except the battery doesn't hold much of a charge. What better excuse could there be to get a new one? Plus, it has wifi which is sweet. So, tending to my old makes me want to keep it....you know...all the hard work that is in it and all!! Alright, I am going to stop rambling about stupid crap and include 3 cute pics of my boys. Oh, I have not forgotten about my post from Dale Hollow. It has kind of lost its kick since it was a week ago but I may need it as filler since my life has all of the
sudden gotten boring!

Spanakopita: Greek Spinach Pie

I decided to expand my horizons a bit and launch my maiden voyage with phyllo dough. I have always liked most things made with it...mostly Baklava. Who wouldn't like it.....well...I guess the people with nut allergies may not. Anywho......it is my favorite dessert.......digressing.

Today I decided to cook something Greek in nature......the above title says it all.....please feel free to try this recipe...it may look complicated but it is not. One suggestion, instead of a "pastry brush", a 1/4" paint brush (never used) works just as well.....Oh, to bypass any copyright bylaws....this is not my personal recipe....I think the kudos go to a young lady named Denise Shoukas. I wonder what derivative that name is from..........not really. (Greek for all the slow people reading this).

Ingredients

• 1 stick plus 1 Tbsp. butter
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 3, 10 ox. boxes frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 1 lb cottage cheese
• 12 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
• 5 large eggs lightly beaten
• 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper
• 1, 1 lb. box phyllo dough
  

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F

Prep time 30 min

Cook time approx. 45-55 min

In a small skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes; transfer to a large bowl. Wipe out the skillet. Place spinach in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out any excess water. Add the spinach, cottage cheese, feta, eggs, salt and pepper to the onion* and stir to combine. Set aside. In the reserved skillet, melt the remaining 1 stick butter. Using a pastry brush, coat a 9-by-12 inch baking dish with melted butter. Unfold the phyllo dough and line the baking dish with 1 phyllo sheet, gently pressing into place and letting any excess hang over the sides. Brush the sheet with more melted butter. Repeat until there are 8 layers of buttered phyllo in the dish. Cover the remaining phyllo sheets with a damp cloth to keep them from drying out. Fill the phyllo-lined baking dish with the reserved spinach mixture. Fold in the overhanging phyllo, sheet by sheet, brushing butter on each sheet. Place another phyllo sheet over the filling and brush with butter. Repeat with the remaining phyllo sheets and butter, brushing the top layer generously with butter. Using a sharp knife, trim the overhanging phyllo sheets to fit the baking dish. Score the top to mark eight servings. Bake the spanakopita until golden-brown, about 45-55 minutes. Let cool for 30 minutes before slicing.

Friday Fill-Ins

We took a long trek to Nashville last night. Our old friends Danielle and Leonard were in town. There were about 12 people at their homecoming. Yes, this is the same Danielle who writes the blog 'Don't Touch the Cactus', the one I said I was going to copy everything she writes, the one who gave me my "Friends Award", and the only person who can give and get the best sarcasm ever. It was nice seeing them again but the 75 minute drive one-way sucked! Just one more example as to why I would LOVE to move back to Nashville.

1. The first rule of working in an office and getting along is minding your own business instead of the business of others. My mom always said "If it does not affect your job, stay out of it.

2. Whenever I buy anything at the seafood counter, Michael wants me to buy him clams.

3. When I think of carnivals I think of funnel cakes with lots of powdered sugar and foot long corn dogs extra crispy.

4. The Lilly is my favorite spring flower.

5. Things on my desk include multiple things to drink, laptop, and assorted paper products.

6. Summer makes me wanna smile.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to staying in and hanging with the family, tomorrow my plans include seeing my mom and a soccer game and Sunday, I want to organize pictures.