Stir Fry (or more of a Lo Mein dish really)

Alright, so I'm trying to make Stir Fry tonight, since I got called off work.

This is my first time attempting this, BTW.

Here we go!

-2 Chicken Breast, cut into chunks, use more or less depending on how many you're serving
-Mixed vegetables (I used some frozen bag vegetables and a can of "Stir Fry Vegetables")
-Udon Noodles



(I found some at Shop N' Save, but you could boil some Ramen noodles and add them, minus the sauce packet)
-Some kind of sauce (I'm using "Iron Chef General Tao Sous" sauce from Shop N' Save, but you can use whatever Asian inspired sauce you like)

1. Heat oil in a pan over medium/medium-high heat.

2. Cook the chicken.

3. Add the vegetables. Some of mine were frozen so they take a bit longer to cook. (I used a broccoli, carrot, squash mix in the freezer and a can of "Stir Fry Vegetables")

4. Add the noodles. I took them out of the package, threw away the seasoning package that came with it and just detangled them with my hands and threw them into the pan.

5. Add the sauce. I added it, mixed it, and covered the pan and let it do its thing for a while. I added a few dashes of soy sauce for good measure.

Yes, I realize this is not technically "stir frying" but, come on, I don't even have a Wok. So perhaps I should call this more of a Lo Mein dish.

Anyway, it turned out looking like this.



And I put it in my fancy Ramen bowl from World Market.





Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnndddddddd........ It turned out pretty darn tasty.

And lots of left overs.

Next indevor: Basmati Rice with Cloves and Cardamom

Over and out ♥

Confessions Of A Tropical Sno Worker

You know how they have "Confessions of a Call Girl" or "Confessions of a Shopaholic"?

Well I'm starting a "Confessions of a Tropical Sno Worker" blog. In list form.

Because I love lists. Lists are cool.

• We do talk about customers when we close the window. When someone walks up to the hut, we will curse them out as much as we can, but when the window opens, it's show time and we'll be as sweet a possible to you.

• No, you may not have every flavor we have. The limit is 5. Once you go past that, you can't taste anything but sugar.

• All Tropical Sno flavors are NOT created equal. We all have our favorites and we all have different tastes. So please find your own favorite!
  

• We have nicknames for all of our regulars. They range from That Guy Who Tips Really Well to Pineapple Guy.

• We also have nicknames for our regulars who we hate. They range from Cruella to Big Black Lady.

• If you come up to the window and you're paying for over 5 people, we expect a tip. If you don't give us one, that gives us incentive to call you a bitch, behind closed windows of course.

• Yes, we love to have fun with our customers. It makes the 4 hours inside the hut go by quicker. Please don't take offense to our making fun of you or our silly little things we do to keep ourselves entertained - we're just bored out of our fucking minds.

• Please and thank you's are a must at T-sno. If you do not say "thank you" when we hand you your snow cone, this also gives us incentive to yell at you... and call you a bitch.

• When we open the window to take your order and we greet you, do not automatically call out your order, "Large Spiderman with Vanilla" then throw your money at us and walk away. This also gives us incentive to yell at you, call you a bitch AND make your sno cone icey.

• We are not your mother! Pick up your damn spoon if you drop it on the ground. Do not rip up your Styrofoam cup into a million little pieces. I don't want to clean it up!

• Watch your children when you're at Tropical Sno. We are located directly next to an extremely busy road that people fly down all the time in their cars. I do not want to have to break out my Future Nurse of America skills on your flat as a pancake kid cause you were too busy talking on your cell phone to watch the little bastard.

• If you're coming from the pool, don't give me wet money. It's fun for no one. Put it in a ziplock baggie for Christ sakes.

• The steel door on the hut has an impenetrable force field around it. We're had two robbery attempts, one with a crow bar and one with an ax (yes, an AX), and still no one has taken anything from the inside. The outside, that's a different story.

• For some reason, people cannot park correctly when visiting Tropical Sno. Please do not park your vehicle out in the middle of BFE (Bum Fuck Egypt) of the parking lot and then cause a traffic jam for other Tropical Sno patrons and members of the pool. I still consider our selves guests of the pool and treat parking my car as such.

• If you ask me if a flavor tastes good and I don't think it does, I'll tell you. I'm not being mean, I'm just being honest.

I can't think of anything else to add to this at the moment, but if any other Tropical Sno workers would like to add to this, tell me!

Over and out ♥

Craigslist!

Oh how I do love the Craigslist.

Just today I sold my electric guitar on the site. Very nice man drove his 14 year old son to my house so he could buy it.

He might be a rockstar some day :D

Anyway, I posted some more stuff on it today. Check out my links!

http://stlouis.craigslist.org/hsh/1863122912.html

Decorative Neon Light in the shape of a guitar

http://stlouis.craigslist.org/hsh/1863116454.html

14 inch long Black Light

BUY MY CRAP!!!

Over and out ♥

Forever Young, I Wanna Be, Forever Young.

I've been slacking on my blog posts. Sorry about that.

I was out getting ice.



So the past few days have been going really well!

I officially got accepted into the Lutheran School of Nursing! No more wait list!!!

And I found a $5 gift card to Starbucks in the QT parking lot!!!

Still waiting to hear if David got the funding to come here (which he will). Should hear by next week for sure.

I'm so excited!!!

Plus I'm 95% sure that my parents will let me go to England if he doesn't get the funding :D

And I also found this kid with this shirt.



Oh happy days at Tropical Sno.

In other blog news, I harvested my first Butternut Squash the other day. My mother and I roasted it in the oven.

It. Was. Heaven.

The Kool-Aid pickles are done..... Um... Well, let me put it this way: I can defiantly see how someone would enjoy them a lot.

It is a nice food option to have in my repertoire.

Over and out ♥

One Week Left

Alright, so according to David, we should find out in a little less than a week if he got the funding to come here or not.

I'm SOOO anxious and nervous at the same time.

Like, if he does get the funding to come here (which he will) this will be our first time meeting.

What will he think of me? What will I think of him? Will his kids like me? Will we like each other?

And, more importantly, what the hell are we gonna do for a week?!

From what we've talked about, he's going to fly into Chicago and we're going to stay up there for a day or two then drive down here. So, this is a list of things I've made that I know he wants to do there and what I want them to do:

- Visit Sears Tower
- Go to the beach there (I don't know the name of it)
- Geino's East
- That place where you can get a super huge sandwich that was on the FoodNetwork
- Superdawg Drive-In
- Navy Pier
- Field Museum/Shedd Aquarium (either or)
- THE BEAN!!!

And also a list of places to take them in St. Louis

- City Museum
- The Arch
- The Zoo
- Raging Rivers
- Piasa Bird!!!
- Magic House (maybe)
- Botanical Garden (maybe)
- Crown Candy Kitchen
- Pappy's (it's a BBQ place)
- Union Station (maybe. I've never been there so I don't know what to expect)

If any of you can think of some place that would be really awesome and kid/adult friendly that I could take them in either St. Louis or Chicago, please let me know!

Over and out ♥

Silly Bands

Lets talk about this new fad sweeping the nation called Silly Bands.

I am freaking in love with these things.

Basically what they are is these rubber bands molded into different shapes. See, I have a pig, a pirate, a skull and cross bones, a duck and a dog.




And when you put them on, they turn into a bracelet and is all wavy and stuff.




But when you take them off, they pop back to their original shape.

It's so genius! And people of all ages love them. My mom loves them.

Even my DAD likes them.

You can find them just about anywhere (I got mine at Dierburgs and I've heard they have them at Wal*Mart) but I also found this website with a whole bunch of cool ones.

http://www.stretchyshapes.com/

So, get your Silly Bands today!!!

Over and Out ♥

One If By Land, Two If By Sea!

I love British men. Especially British men named David.

David Tennant



David Beckham



And my wonderful, amazing, charming boyfriend, David Heaney ♥



I like him... a lot :D



We should find out in a little less then 2 weeks if David got the funding to come here. Keep your fingers crossed everyone!

Over and out ♥

Kool Aid Pickles

I was watching Good Eats late one night on TV and I saw Alton Brown make Kool Aid pickles.

I was instantly intrigued.

So, I searched around the internet for a recipe that I could use.

After looking at a couple, I came up with this...


Kool Aid Pickles

1 32oz. jar of Kosher Dill Pickles (spears or whole, doesn't matter)
2 unsweetened cherry Kool Aid packets
1/2 cup of sugar

1. Open the jar, dump out the pickles and strain off the juice.
2. Fill the empty jar a little bit below half full with warm water.
3. Add sugar and Kool Aid packets. Stir until dissolved.
4. Pack the pickles back and put the lid back on.
5. Place in the fridge for ONE WEEK.


I've never tried them so this is a new adventure for me. Hopefully they turn out AWESOME.







We'll see in a week!

Over and out ♥

Party On Wayne, Party On Garth!

So last night at the bonfire, I posed this question to a small group of people:

When people in other regions of the country want to have a party where there is underage drinking and light drug usage, what do they say is happening?

For example: it's kind of assumed in this region that when you're having a bonfire out in the middle of no where that there is going to be drinking and some drugs, like pot for example.

But what do they say in like... New York? California? Texas? Montana? Florida?

Here are my thoughts....

New York: "Hey, we're going to Joe's Pizza then hanging out in a parking lot."

California: "Hey, we're having a beach party dude!"

Texas: "Hey y'all, we're go'n cow tipp'n!"

Montana: "Lets go sit out in the middle of this field for a while and ride some buffalo."

Florida: ..... I can't think of anything for Florida.

I guess there is always the standard, "My parents are out of town" house party that happens no matter where you go, but I feel like here, at least, if you're going to a bonfire at the age of 20 in the Midwestern United States, it should be assumed that there is going to be some drinking and light drug usage.

Just my thoughts on the matter.

Over and out ♥

As Seen On TV

I'm dedicating a post to As Seen On TV merchandise.

Lets start with the good stuff.

As Seen On TV Merchandise That I Would Love To Have

1. Lobster Gram


http://www.livelob.com/

I freaking always ask everyone for lobster. If anyone ever sent me a Lobster Gram, I would poop myself.

2. NuWave Oven



Just look at this thing. Seriously. It cooks steaks from frozen in 2 seconds (well almost), cooks all your vegatitables, it even bakes! Seriously. This is perfect for someone in college. It's smaller than a oven and does almost everything an oven can.

3. Ab Transform



As one of the Future Nurses' of America, this is a work out product I can get behind. This belt has pads in it that send electric pulses to your muscles and stimulate the muscles so they contract. They use these in physical therapy - I've seen my dad use them on his leg when he tore his quad at work.... I want it.


... Now for the bad...


As Seen On TV Merchandise I Wish Would Go Away


1. ShamWOW




Vince scares the poop outta me.


2. Shake Weight




Yes, please let me have a machine that lets me work on my hand job skills. KThanks.


3. Hug-E-Gram



....... What?


4. Kids Bop



Ok, ok. I'll give Kidz Bop one thing: their cover of "Baby" by Justin Bieber sounds just like the real thing!


Anything you guys would like to add?


Over and out ♥

Zucchini Blossoms

Alright, so! I was having this problem with the blossoms falling off my zucchini plants. I thought "The damn rabbits are eating them!" Not the case. This article was very helpful to me!

http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/vegetable/why-zucchini-blossoms-fall-off-the-plant.htm

Why do zucchini blossoms fall off the plant?

There are 2 reasons why zucchini blossoms fall off the plant.
Male zucchini blossoms

This is the most common reason for zucchini flowers falling off the plant. Zucchini plants have male and female flowers. Only female zucchini blossoms can produce zucchini squash. Once male zucchini blossoms have opened to release their pollen, they simply fall off the plant. Many times, a zucchini plant will produce only male blossoms when first in bloom to ensure that pollen will be available when the female blossoms open. The male blossoms will all fall off, making it seem as though the zucchini plant is losing all of its flowers. Don’t worry, female blossoms will open soon and you will get zucchini squash.
Poor pollination

Zucchini blossoms will also fall of the plant if the pollination between the male and female blossoms are poor. Basically, the plant will abort the female blossoms if they are not pollinated well enough. Poor pollination can happen due to a lack of pollinators like bees or butterflies, high humidity that causes the pollen to clump, rainy weather or a lack of male blossoms.

While zucchini blossoms falling off the plant may look alarming, it is perfectly naturaland is not an indicator of any problems with the plant itself.

And there you go. I feel better about my plants now : D

Cutiest Little Kid Shirt EVER!

So I was working in the nursery this morning at church and this little kid named Jake came in. Guess what was printed all over his shirt?....

LOBSTERS!!!!!



SO CUTE!!

The weather says there is a 50% chance of rain today.... That's not good enough for me. Time to water the plants!

Over and out ♥

Freaking Huge Zucchini!

First of all, a friend of mine wanted me to post a picture of my chicken coop set up.

Here you go, Jack.



Ok, now on to other matters...

I GREW A FREAKING HUGE ZUCCHINI!!!

It's bigger then my forearm.

It's bigger than a baby!

IT'S LONGER THAN MY DOG!!!



As a reference, I wear size 10 in womens shoes.



I also harvested my first cucumber, but it's just normal size.

And an egg. But we always have eggs : 3

Over and out ♥

Mary, Mary, quite contrary. How does your garden grow?

I have a garden. It is an epic garden. I dare you to compare to my garden. :D



What grows there you ask?

Tomatoes (Herloom, Grape, Mr. Stripey, Big Boy)
Green Peppers (California Wonder Pepper and Sweet Green Bells)
Cucumbers
Zucchini (its bigger then my forearm!!!)



Butternut Squash



Watermelon
String Beans
Carrots
Basil
Cilantro
Rosemary
Chocolate Mint



What should I try my hand at growing next year?

I'm thinking everything that I have going on now plus...

Strawberries
Blueberries
Blackberries
Pumpkins

"A garden is never so good as it will be next year."

:D











Over and out ♥

You have chickens? OREALY?!

Alright. Well, since I want to talk about my chickens in this blog, I feel like I should introduce them. I currently have 7 (I used to have 11) and most of them have names.

ROLE-CALL!!!

Silkey




3 Easter Eggers (Beardy, Ducky, and one yet to be named) and 1 Brown Leghorn



And I don't exactly have that many single pictures of my current ones, but I will tell you the rest of their names are Hipnosteve IV and Chicken Patrick Harris. For the time being, here's one of all of my old ones!



And because I want to showcase some of my photography, here are some photos inspired by my chickens.













Over and out :-)

I Made Turkey Meatballs Today...

....and they were wonderful. One of the better things that I've created.


I used fresh basil and tomatoes from my garden....

















... and the biggest zucchini squash I've ever seen....




... and they came out looking something like this....






And they were quite tasty. Here's the recipe I made for them.

1 lb. ground turkey
1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
1 egg
2 Tbs fresh basil
1/2 Tbs dried rosemary
1/2 Tbs dried garlic
1/4 large white onion, chopped finely

Mix all of that together, shape into balls, and simmer in your favorite sauce for 20 minutes (or until done).

Ahhhh, so good. I served it over Penna Regatta pasta that was salted perfectly. Defiantly one of the better meals I've made.

This is also my first blog post on blogspot and I have a feeling most of my other ones will be like this also. I've always kind of wanted a blog where I could keep track of my cooking indevors, my garden, my photography and my chickens. And now I have one. Yay!

Over and out :-)