The Cake is a Lie

Sorry for not posting any dribble yesterday. I was running errands with Hubby, and by the time we arrived at home, it was time to play Taxi for the kidlets, and figure out what to make for dinner, which was a feeble attempt at Salisbury steak. Live, and learn.

Anyway, yesterday Hubby and I decided to have a sit-down lunch instead of drive-thru fare. My thrifty side was feeling a wee bit guilty, but it was his idea, and who am I to stop him from being happy, right? RIGHT?? It also gives us a chance to talk and not feel rushed about anything, so that was nice. And then it was time for dessert.

I do love Tiramisu, almost as much as I love Crème Brulee. The name translates to “pick me up”, which might be a reference to the caffeine in the espresso coffee and the cocoa powder.

But it was all a lie!!!

Looking at the picture I could feel the happiness radiating from it. “Go ahead and get some,” my Aggie Devil said. “It’s just one tiny, itty bitty dessert…” she kept whispering. And I was ctlhoisse* to getting it. But the Aggie Angel showed up. “Don’t do it. It’s a lie! The cake will make you feel good at first, and then you’ll want more, and more, until you can no longer fit in your clothes!!”

I hate it when she’s logical. In the end I skipped it, knowing I didn’t need it and being full as I was would have made me feel even worse, physically at least. I can find balance between need and want.

I just have to remember to order dessert first next time 😉

* “this close” jumbled up to emphasize just how close I really was to ordering it!!

Through a Glass Lightly

Heh, I love coming up with titles based on other titles. It tickles my punny bone.

I was over at Bad Bad Juju and happened to see the Juju Woman’s latest work of art. She does some beautiful stained glass work, and Anjin/ Yabu isn’t shy about posting photos, thank goodness. I get a nice fix of purdy when he does.

Anyway, it got me to thinking on getting back into my stained glass hobby. Yes, I used to do stained glass, mostly by copper foil method, but did some lead came work, too. Copper foil is easier, but not as forgiving as came. Still, it is so cool to cut and grind glass into shapes that fit together to form a beautiful glass painting. Most of the works I did I gave away as gifts. I remember doing a bunch of angels using bevels and flat glass marbles (like the ones people put in vases or fish tanks for decor) for one of my mother’s many Christmas trees. And not to mention a ton of little flowers using said marbles. Biggest one I ever did was the Texas flag in the shape of Texas. My brother-in-law got that one for his birthday one year. This one, however, I kept as a reminder of my many stained glass work mistakes:

As Yabu says, it’s a pain to capture the beauty of a stained glass panel. I think I took 15 pics with my phone and this one was the best one. Even with all the rookie mistakes I made, it is still one of my favorite pieces and a very nice pattern to boot. I think in my heyday I must have made about 20 of these, in different colors and backgrounds. And now as I begin to reorganize and purge stuff in the garage, I may get back into it, if only to make gifts for friends and family.

But first, I’m going to make an Aggie panel for my home! 😉

Terminal Madness

Hubby got back from Hungary last night. Normally it’s a long trip. This time, it was a nightmare. Plane delayed due to a passenger’s missing paperwork in Heathrow, then plane redirected to OKC due to bad weather, then missing the connecting flight here, only to get the last flight out, which in turn was delayed on the tarmac due to many flights having been redirected. He finally arrived at 1 AM. At least the drive home was without traffic.

Anyway, while I was waiting for him, I kept busy watching people. I have to admit I do enjoy people watching. It’s fun, and I tend to make up stories about them. Like the gentleman who was wearing a business suit and carrying a garment bag. He obviously looked like a travelling business man, but could be a hitman just as easily. Oh, and the lady looking at her watch was obviously waiting for her significant other, but could also just be watching for the coffee shop to open. Kids are easy, though. They just run around and have fun in wide open spaces while ignoring their elders commands to shut up and sit down. However, sometimes you find one person from which you just can not tear your eyes!!

Most of us hope for Brad Pitt or Kate Upton, but I got the equivalent of Rebecca Black.

She was sitting behind me, flirting with a young man who was waiting for his ride home. Her voice was as smooth as sand in cogs. Her attire was appropriate for being out and about, especially the streets. But is was her sheer stupidity that drew me like moth to Bonfire™. Apparently she was waiting for someone to come in on a flight, she was just unaware of which flight. All she knew was that he would be carrying an instrument. Suddenly she spied a gentleman with bulky baggage, and practically sauntered in her 5 in platform wedges to him, asking him if he had been waiting long for her, etc. Confused, the man kept shaking his head, and pointed to the baggage, saying something that made her titter and leave. She comes back to her friend and laughs shrilly, saying he was carrying golf clubs!! I just cringed. Finally the flight came in, and she went to meet it. And her friend, the man that was supposed to be carrying an instrument, turned out to be a woman carrying a tote bag. And she said she forgot. How do you 1) confuse genders, and 2) confuse baggage?? Well, she managed, but not before running into an older gentleman and insisting his name was Mr. Peterson, something the man vehemently denied, four times.

Last night I came so close to weeping for the future. Thank goodness I was wearing mascara.

The Best Gifts

This morning, a local radio personality posted a photo of an early Mother’s Day gift made by her young son. He made and decorated a cake, just for her. I fell in love with it, because it is so simple and and loving a gift for his mom, and because he thought of doing this just for her.

I remember growing up, we kids didn’t have much in the way of spending money, but we went out of our way to learn how to make Mom’s coffee (thick enough to stand a spoon in it, and strong enough to make the spoon disintegrate), and picked flowers from the field (not from her garden, since she probably would have had a cow), and make her cards in our very questionable artistic abilities. To this day my mother still has some of my sister’s cartoon characters displayed on her refrigerator.

 

I still have my kids’ hand prints, and their hand made cards, and ornaments. I love the thought they put into the items they make, and the sentiments they write. Motherhood is a very bumpy road, but I have never regretted the path taken. I am blessed every day, even when taxed by growing pains of every eventuality, and thank the Good Lord for the blessings He has given me through my children. I look forward to opening my cards this Sunday, and laughing and crying over them, as I always do.

I also look forward to hopefully not cooking, but I’m not holding my breath for that 😉

Sweet Swilling

As some of y’all know, last Saturday I attended the 9th Annual Wein and Saengerfest. It was fun to be out and about drinking legally in the streets. Anyway, the talk of the fest is always the Sangria made by Dry Comal Creek Vineyards™.

In a word, SUPERB!!!

Why? Because not only did it taste heavenly, it is super cheap, super easy, and super fast to make! TOTAL WIN!!

Texas Style Sangria

• 1 6oz can of frozen orange juice concentrate, plus one can of water
• 1 6oz can of frozen limeade concentrate, plus one can of water
• 1 liter of grapefruit soda
• 1 bottle Dry Comal Creek Foot Pressed Red Wine™

Blend limeade and orange juice concentrates with water. Add the wine, stirring well, then add the grapefruit soda, and stir well again. Freeze until slushy, or serve over ice if you are impatient, like me. Garnish with orange slices, or pass on the fruit if your impatient, like me 😉

Cross-posted at H&B.

Cleaning Binge

I’m on it!

Lately I have had the urge to clean up the stacks of stuff we have around the house. Maybe it was The Queen’s dictate of doing five things a day, or Hubby losing track of stuff, but it has gotten under my skin. And things are looking much better around here.

Now, a lot of the stuff is his, that has been collected while he’s been away. But we also have boxes of books and papers that need their place. This weekend sounds like a fine time to organize that on some shelves in the garage.

Sigh… 😉

News of Import

GUESS WHAT??

IT’S THE QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY!!!

Now, go give her some royal greetings 😀

Bacchanalia, Texas Style

Yesterday we went to the 9th Annual Wein and Saengerfest hosted in the lovely old German city of New Braunfels. Basically it’s a very large wine tasting featuring mostly wineries from across the state, though some out-of-state wineries were also featured. I didn’t bother much with those, since I was interested in the local stuff that I can get at the grocery store easily. Ok, I didn’t bother with them because I was too busy looking for the Sangria tent.

Which we found right off the bat!!

The way the fest works is, you purchase five tickets for five samples and get a free wineglass. You then have the option to purchase more tickets for $3 each. Total ripoff, but worth it when you consider you are away from the house and having semi-adult conversations with friends your own age. Wait…. Hm…. ok, close to your age. I just realized I was the oldest in the group. Had I realized that yesterday, I would have bought more tickets.

Ignore the manicure, look at the glass!

As soon as we find the Sangria tent, sponsored by a local favorite, Dry Comal Creek Vineyards™, we fork over two tickets. Yes, it cost two tickets, but you get a full glass of cold, delicious Sangria. And though the temperature was only 88* F (31* C for my Metric friends), the humidity was at about 1,890%, which explains the hellacious storm that came through the area last night, dumping roughly 2 inches and scaring the everloving life out of the dogs and Little One. So at least I can scratch “water the lawn” off my chore list today.

All in all, we had a great time. I only had to buy one extra ticket, so that was good. Like I said, the Sangria was worth two tickets, and I was rather thirsty. Besides, I didn’t have to drive at all. The stars don’t align like that very often, you know 😉

Revenge of the Fifth

No, I’m not talking about a fifth of liquor. Yesterday was May the Fourth, which hopefully was with you all day long. If it wasn’t, then I hope you imbibed from a fifth of something.

And it was a very long day for yours truly. Ran around town looking for last minute things for Hubby before he left for his trip, dropped him off at the airport at the height of rush hour, only to come home and find out my evening plans to have dinner with a friend fell through. It was just as well. I was extremely tired. I don’t remember falling asleep, to tell you the truth. I do recall having to get up at 6:45 AM to pick up Son from the Relay for Life, though…

Today is a new day, however. And I have the opportunity to attend the 9th Annual Wein and Saengerfest. Several wineries will be giving away samples, as well as local breweries. And let’s not forget about the “Saengerfest” part of the title. In a German town, food will be flowing along with the beer.

And guess what?? I am not the designated driver this time!!!!

Of course, that doesn’t mean I’ll be sloshy when I return home. But at least I will be able to sample wines without worry. Besides, I have to come home to make dinner and enjoy a movie with the kidlets and also go outside to enjoy the spectacular view of the Moon. No matter what, the geek in me always surfaces 😉

May the Fourth Be Always

Today is the official holiday of Sithy Things. Like y’all didn’t see that coming, right? Son and Eldest and I will be sporting Sith wear. Unfortunately,  Little One is doing a band recruitment so she couldn’t wear her Sithy stuff, and Hubby will be flying out to Hungary today, so he is trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. But the rest of us have our geek on, and are loving it!

Sometimes I surprise myself…

Anyway, I hope today the Force™ is strong with y’all, because I would find y’all’s lack of faith in it….disturbing… 😉

Have a wonderful Friday!!!