A New Chapter

The month of March came by and flew away quickly. Here I am finding myself at the end of April with fantastic news. The past few weeks have felt like a whirlwind between Easter and getting ENGAGED! Yes, I got engaged to my forever love two weeks ago. I am beyond blessed that God brought us together in his time. Life is going in a fantastic direction as we embark on this new chapter in life. Like I said, the month of March flew by with a new kitty with the month of April ushering a new chapter in my life. Everything in life is going great as May is approaching quickly as wedding planning begins.

A New Addition… with a few tips

I know I said that I would be more consistent with my blogging. Well, I’ve been trying but recently my boyfriend and I adopted a beautiful three year old cat named Noelle. She has sure made a mark in our hearts and keeps us on our toes. Sure enough she is going to be one spoiled kitty as she has become the most precious addition to our home.

Since getting Noelle there have been a few things that we are learning along the way. Before, we adopted Noelle we asked a few cat owners on how to prep. Luckily, for me, my sister’s best friend is a veterinarian, so I was able to ask for some advice before, and yes, after we brought her home. Anyway, here are a few tips:

• Get a cat starter set. You don’t want your new cat to come home and have nothing. Getting stuff like a scratching tower, food bowls, and a litter box are essentials.
• Budget, budget, budget! Yes, this one is most important as you have a new addition you have to take care of. That means food, toys, and the veterinarian. Yes, cat food, both of us learned, can be pretty expensive. Plus, cats can be pretty picky. The shelter we got her from fed her Hill’s Science Diet. Unfortunately, for us, it was a little pricy so we went go with Purina Plus.
• Pet insurance, yes or no. Personally, since we are first time cat owners, we decided to get Trupanion pet insurance for our kitty. While she is not a kitten and, hopefully, does not have any severe health issues; we still don’t know what to expect. For example, a couple days after bringing her home she got a little sick. Naturally, my cat mom instincts were she had gotten very sick. So, I contacted a vet to ask. Although, they said she probably ate too fast and it wasn’t an alarm for concern right now, to be wary of her getting sick again. If she did depending on how it looked we would have to take her to the vet. Even though, we may not need this insurance during her lifetime. In fact, we may even get rid of it at some point, we are grateful we have a safety net in the event something does happen.
• Doggy bags! This one may seem a little out different. Yet, it is something I read up on that comes in hand with the litter box. Yes, the litter box that needs to be cleaned once or twice a day. With doggy bags you can dispose of the kitty’s business without it staying in a garbage bag all week. With the doggy bag, you can dispose of this without your house having to smell. We have a garbage bag put aside in our garage for the litter box, both for waste disposal, then when we change the litter we bring it up and dispose of the litter there.
• Don’t buy too many little toys. Yes, Noelle loves all of the toys that we got her. Even, the little sushi kit, taco and pizza sets. However, these toys are pretty small, so no matter what we do they are everywhere. I even started placing them in her cat tower (that she doesn’t really use, I might add). While most of them are kept there, I still come home to find little toys in the most craziest of places. Little toys are great, but too many of them, well, is a hassle.
• Be prepared for accidents! When we first brought Noelle home she bolted underneath the couch. Looking back on it, we wished we had set her up in the bathroom with everything she needed. Anyway, we became concerned we would find accidents under the couch. Thankfully, this did not happen. Never the less, we were prepared as we did knew our precious kitty may be scared to come out with use there for a bit. We both agreed to give her a week to adjust, then make the transition. Well, that night she warmed up to both of us. But, we did encounter her having an “issue” one week after having her. So, yes, there was a major accident in the bathroom where her litter box is. Poor thing was embarrassed and hid. Yes, we did clean it up, never the less accidents happen and getting pet cleaner is one thing you’ll have to get.
• Find a vet before adopting! I know, I told you so! But, finding one before getting the cat is very important. Not just a cat but any pet. That way when you get one, once you have said animal, you can make the appointment with one you trust. We asked around before we found one with flexible hours to match our schedule.
• Don’t buy food! Well, after you get the cat buy the food. But, don’t go and stock up on a certain kind of food for the cat. Instead, ask the shelter, store, etcetera what type of food the cat likes before stocking up. This suggestion came from a friend who has three cats. Each of her cats will only eat one brand of food. Yes, when talking about cat food we learned through cat owners they are brand particular as well. It’s not just wet and dry, although we do feed her both, it’s brand based well.
• Get ready to say no. Noelle loves walking and sitting on my laptop. When it is opened and I am watching a movie. She also loves scratching my wicker chairs and foot rest. Also, she tries to eat any food I eat. Last week I got into a fight with her over a turkey sandwich. Not to mention, she enjoys climbing on the kitchen counters when we are unloading groceries, cooking, and cleaning. So, we have to say no a lot. As you can guess, she does not like this. But, we do have to tell her no.
• ADOPT DON’T SHOP! As I mentioned we adopted Noelle from the Connecticut Humane Society in Waterford, CT. There we saw, not only Noelle, but other animals who are looking for a furever home. We went up a week before and saw another cat we wanted to bring home, but couldn’t because he had to be cleared from the vet. In those shelters they do what they can, but Noelle’s home before our condo was a tiny little condo. She only had four walls with a privacy towel and a couple of toys. The condo we have is a castle compared to what she was living in. We are beyond happy to know we were able to give Noelle a happy home. Yet, are saddened there are other lovely animals, not just cats, but dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs who are all looking for one.

So, there you have it. A long list of things regarding getting a cat. Noelle loves playing with her toys and sleeping with her mom and dad. Getting a cat isn’t for everyone, but bringing Noelle home is one thing neither of us regret. She is the apple of our eye. We couldn’t be more grateful to have a loving and caring pet.

Fighting the Bitter Cold

The start of a new year means the holiday season is over and the bitter cold of winter has begun. For me that means chapped lips, dry skin on both my hands, and wearing a long coat with: a hat, mittens, and scarf. Now, this only for a couple more months. But, still the cold is here to stay until the Spring thaw.

Unfortunately, the Winter season is one of those that you can’t escape from. Waking up in the morning to the frigid air in hopes your car warms up quickly. Nothing stops the cold from coming year after year. During these times I try to think warm thoughts. There are plus sides to Winter like cuddling up with a bowl of hot soup and tea, seeing snowmen be built, and warming up with a cup of hot cocoa after shoveling snow.

The bitter cold is something we all prepare for. Yet, no matter what fighting the cold isn’t always easy. Bundling up before going outside isn’t easy. Especially, when you wear a heavy sweater only to find movement in your arms limited due to puffed up coat sleeves. But, in the end the isn’t here forever. Only in a couple of months spring starts again.

Since March….

Where have I been since March… well what can I say the time got away from me. I meant to continue blogging here and there. But, I did not expect to take a nine month break (LOL). Life moves fast and quickly, I learned that when I logged in thinking that my last blog post was only a few weeks ago. I’m not lying when I say I was surprised that it had been nine months. So far, life is good. I am wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Hopefully, next year I will be more diligent with my blogging.

Green Chile Stew

Hi folks! It has been over a month since my last post. Time really has been flying by. It feels just like yesterday that I did my Posole Stew post from Josefina’s book. Well, this is another recipe from Josefina’s Cook Book from the American Girl series. I must say I am enjoying the simple and scrumptious recipes that are coming from these books and making them my own.

Recipe:

2 pounds stew beef

1 large onion

1 T of minced garlic

5 tablespoons olive oil

1 2oz. can of green chiles

2.5 cups water

1 teaspoon flour

Instructions:

Heat three tablespoons of the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat with the stew meat. While doing this chop up the onion. After the the meat has been browned add one more teaspoon of olive oil with the minced garlic and onion. Once the onions are browned add the chiles, personally, I did not drain the chiles, and cook for one minute. Add the water and bring it to boil in the pot. After the water is done boiling let it simmer for up to forty five minutes. Close to the end of the simmering take one tablespoon of olive oil and one teaspoon flour in a small skillet to create a roux. Stir the roux in with the stew. Let it cool and serve!

Posole Stew

It’s been a while since I have done a recipe that I adapted from the American Girl Cook Book Series. This one is from Josefina’s and it is called Posole Stew. This was one fun and delicious recipe to adapt.

1 14 oz. bag of posole corn

4 cups water

1 lb of beef stew meat

2 T of minced garlic

1 large onion

1 teaspoon oregano

2 teaspoons salt

1 T of ground red chiles

Instructions: Soak the posole corn in water for eight hours. Towards the end of the eight hours chop up the onion. After chopping up add the onion, garlic the oregano, salt, stew meat, and chiles to a saucepan. After eight hours drain the posole and place in the saucepan with four cups of water. Cook on high until the stew boils. After the stew has come to a boil check the meat to make sure that it is cooked through. If it is not lower the heat to medium and check every five to ten minutes until the meat is cooked through. Let the the stew cool and enjoy.

Cooking Hint: Make sure that the meat is defrosted before placing it in the pot!

Happy Valentines Day!

This post I was planning on writing for tomorrow. However, I do have to work a double and will not be able to do so. Valentines Day is upon us, so I’d figure I would wish you all a happy one. A day that is filled with chocolate and love. To all the couples, I hope this day is filled with the joyous reminder of being together. To those who are single, Valentines Days is a day to enjoy celebrated with those whom you love around you. I hope you all have a wonderful Valentines Day tomorrow.

Lessons from My First Snow-In

I live in Connecticut and Old Man Winter came in strong Saturday. He sure came in dropping a whopping eighteen inches of snow on the ground complete with strong winds and road closures. Luckily, I did not lose power during the storm. But, I did find myself limiting plans I had for Saturday, even at home, as I could not go anywhere. But, I did learn a few things.

1. Get on a shovel schedule. Yes, I live in a condo and have a snow plowing in my lease. However, I also have a deck and front door that I have to clear off if there is more than a foot. So, naturally, I had to get on a schedule to clean off the snow before it got too heavy.
2. Use cardboard or towels. This is for the floor after shoveling. I called my mom in the midst of the storm and told her that I had tracked in snow from my porch. My mom suggested putting down cardboard in order to avoid having snow being tracked in from my boots. When I went out the second time, I found it worked like a charm.
3. Limit appliance use. Usually, on Saturday, I do my laundry. However, there was a high risk for a power outage. So, I put off doing my laundry until today, Sunday. Even though, I didn’t want to do so; I definitely didn’t want soaking wet clothes.
4. Keep the phone charged. I kept my phone charged all the way in case I lost power. As you can probably guess I was expecting to lose power at some point yesterday. Luckily, I didn’t lose it. While I am grateful, I am happy that my phone was fully charged as it is great to use for calls and as a flashlight.

In short, a blizzard came in and left almost two feet of snow on the ground. There was much relaxing in between the shoveling and cooking I did yesterday. While, I did enjoy having a day to myself, I did find it great to just relax in my pajamas for a full day.

Also, thank you to all of those who plowed and are actively plowing and treating the roads to make them safe.

Meal Prep Lessons

Hi all, I do plan on sharing more recipes soon. But, for now I do plan on sharing some lessons I learned from meal prepping.

1. If you are only have a little bit left, why not use it? This came in useful when I was cooking a stew last week. I only had a little bit left of one ingredients, so I just added it in.
2. Don’t be afraid to substitute! Like many I have been finding it hard to locate certain items in grocery stores. I have found that going to google and looking up a good substitute has come in useful.
3. Take advantage of spices for leftovers. A couple of nights ago I had leftover rice from Chinese I had ordered. To spice things up a bit I added in some oregano, red pepper, and onion powder complete with cheese for lunch.
4. Check your cabinets! This is one lesson that I learned growing up. After reading a recipe look through your cabinets to make sure you have what you need. Then, create a list for when you go to the grocery store and focus on that.
5. Think outside the box when prepping. For example, the cream of carrot soup I made did not call for celery, potatoes, and onions. I decided to add those in. I had celery that had to be used and thought potatoes and onions would be nice. I found that the soup still came out delicious with. Consider adding to the recipe when you cook.

So, those are tips I have from meal prepping. Enjoy! I hope you are all staying warm this winter.

Almond Milk

In the past two recipes that I shared I mentioned I was using almond milk instead. The first time I had almond milk I was not fond of it. I found almond milk to be a watered down version of regular milk. However, as time went on I found more and more people who were using almond milk as opposed to regular milk. I did some research and decided to share a few facts on almond milk:

• If you buy unsweetened almond milk, then it is low in sugar. Yes, as you know too much sugar can be bad for you. Almond milk can be a healthy option for not haivn
• Almond milk is low in calories and carbs. Many of the people whom I know who have switched to almond milk have done so for this reason.
• It is high in calcium. “Milk builds strong bones” is a phrase that I frequently heard through out my childhood. One of those reasons I was told, and found was true as an adult, is due to calcium. So, here’s to calcium in almond milk.
• If found that almond milk is easier to cook with. This is a fact that is my own personal one. I don’t know if you know this but, you are not supposed to use milk as a base in a crockpot due to it being dairy. But, almond milk is not dairy and, to me, is a great substitute for cooking with regular milk.

So, here’s to almond milk. Yes, I may have regular milk around at times. But, I found that almond milk is a great alternative to regular milk. Hope you all had a great week.