Guess What Was For Dinner

I couldn't find a picture to do it justice: you get limes and cilantro instead.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole! ahem. I made the recipe myself.

Sauce:

1 big can of red enchilada sauce (green's okay, but I like the red for this)

1 pinch of garlic powder

1/4 tsp of cumin

(optional) A packet of hot sauce from a taco joint. I used a DelTaco "inferno" packet.

Open the can and stir the spices right into it before dumping it out. 

Chicken:

2 cups-ish of cooked chicken, which you then soak in lime or lemon juice. 

I use diced chicken, but anything will work. Put chicken in a bowl, pour juice over it, and stir it every so often so it's evenly coated.The longer it soaks the better--try to let the juice absorb.

Filling:

3 1/2 cups-ish of corn tortillas chopped into squares. (2.5" of stacked tortillas)

1 frozen bag of corn 

1 can (drained) black beans

1 can of diced green chilies

1 can of diced tomatoes

Mix in whatever you want-- I don't always add the tomatoes, and once I added black olives and onions. Whatever. Add red pepper flakes for more spice if you don't have kids who need mellow food. :)

Halloween Party

found on Martha Stewart.com

Halloween decorations always make me giddy. When I see pumpkins my eyes light up and my heart beats faster. I went all over Martha Stewart's Halloween stuff yesterday and found these print-able invites for a Halloween party. Fun, right? I know if I got one in the mail I'd make sure I attended.  

How about an egg?

I needed to eat something. I was getting more and more sick by the second and needed food, but of course, nothing sounded good. Dylan tried to brainstorm ideas for me.

Toast?

No. 

OJ?

No. 

Chicken?

No. And then he gets this not-so-genius idea that I want eggs. 

"I'll make them any way you want! Scrambled, boiled, fried, over easy--"

Then I, trying to be snarky, say, "Poached."

To my surprise, Dylan smiled like poached eggs weren't ridiculously hard to make. "Sure! I'll get right on that!"

"Dylan, do you even know how to make poached eggs?"

"Sure. That's when I sneak into the neighbor's house and steal their eggs."

Ohmahgosh. 

Let it begin! Let it begin!

 

FRINGE starts tonight! Aaaaah, I'm so excited to see how Olivia escapes from Walternate. Unfortunately there's no TV at my house so I'll have to wait to see it on Hulu tomorrow. Peter just HAS to figure out he's got the wrong Olivia. 

Castle is great; I am especially a fan of their Halloween episodes. But Fringe is so much more exciting! I've been dying for it to start all summer. BRING ON THE FRINGE SCIENCE!

Some Mornings Are Better Than Others

 

Frequently I coax myself into eating. "Come on, Rachel, just one piece of toast. You can do it, just one bite. Good--now swallow--swallow, okay now one more bite..."

I feel sick and don't want to eat, but if I don't eat I'll feel even more sick. Everyday I mostly sit at home resting, and forcing myself to eat every hour and a half. If I give in and don't eat on that schedule... life is very unpleasant.

Yesterday wasn't so bad. Today... it's just one piece of toast.

Recent Album

There are some fabulous songs on here. You should you-tube it.

Guess What Was For Dinner

Homemade Mac & Cheese

When browsing the internet for a better mac & cheese recipe, I always revert to mine instead. It isn't perfect, but it's easier, faster, and the ingredients are common (except one). Dylan obsesses over it, and we both fight for the leftovers. Fatty carbs! Who can resist?

Recipe curious?

Drive through the canyon with me?

I want a burger? I... what?

Thanks for the gift card, Heather. I'm hooked.

I've never understood people saying "I want a burger." Why? If I went for fast-food, I'd much rather have had Arby's (then again, I still might, especially if curly fries are involved), and then there's Taco Bell, anything chicken at Wendy's, and obviously-- Dominoes-- oy, their new recipe far surpasses any other pizza. But want a burger? Meh. Even at a family BBQ there was always something better on the menu. Now thanks to In-N-Out I understand the concept of burger lust. 

The hype surrounding the place originally made me skeptical;  one opened in Orem and was swamped for three months and every Californian in Utah salivated like a zombie when the yellow arrow was visible. Soon after my first In-N-Out sample I began to provide Dylan with excuses to go back for more. Surprisingly, it's not just the food that's different. 

Every surface in an In-N-Out shines with a clean gleam, people working behind the counter are neither slow, stupid, incompetent nor angry, ingredients are surprisingly real, and the taste...hommina. Holding my cheeseburger in hand, I felt like Willy Wonka beside lickable-wallpaper: the cheese actually tastes like cheese! The bun tastes like bread! The meat has seasoning! Fries are made from actual potatoes! The lettuce is crispy, and if you ask for onions they give you an entire onion slice. Mercy!

Much to my surprise, I... want a burger.

Ah, Make-up! How I love thee.

It's been five days since Monday. That's five days since I've been well enough to leave the house, shower, eat, or sit up without the company of "Mr.Bowl."  This morning I finally got to scrub my disgusting hair. Yaaaaay, cleanliness! Five days has got to be a record for me, cause my hair is nasty greasy (no thanks to genes from my Dad's side). And guess what! Today I got to put on make-up. :) So nice to see my familiar face. 

Though clean, I remain at home whiling away the hours with Fablehaven and trying to eat something every hour or so. Though yesterday I could manage nothing but small sips of 7UP and a 1/4 cup of quinoa, today I swallowed Cilantro-Lime-Rice from a mex restaurant. I liiiiiive!

Yes, I refer to morning sickness. Psh! I had to visit a doctor for severe dehydration two weeks ago and it took 6 1/2 hours in his office for an IV drip to complete. Sheesh! Did you know that when you're really dehydrated your veins take extra-extra-long to absorb liquid? Jiminy, what torture. This kid had better be cute. ;)  

Look familiar?

Name that mountain vista!

Baby Maltby

Coming Spring 2011

Silly me, I almost forgot to tell you! Dylan and I are thrilled that I'm pregnant. We're so excited!

Discipline

"Mr. Discipline," the paddle in Split Infinity, a movie set in 1929.

The word discipline has 9 different definitions, but the one most of us think of is punishment. A more appropriate definition is an "activity, exercise, or regimen that develops or improves a skill; training to act in accordance with the rules." It should be training, and not punishment that springs to mind. 

As I now prepare to be a mom, I admitted to myself that I'm nervous. No matter how much confidence says "you can handle that," my heart freezes in place when I see children ruling the roost while the parents try and try to combat unruly behavior. That could be me, I think. But then I see parents in similar situations with kids that are obedient and respectful and think what do those parents do differently? 

Kids aren't cookie cutters. I'm not kidding myself-- I know for certain that every child will throw unique curve balls that Mom has to sort out and that each child requires different handling. But I also know some parents have smarter strategies that deliver more positive outcomes. In the interest of boosting my confidence I'm determined to discover as many of those as possible before my foremost title in life is "Mom."

Like any good librarian, I'm beginning my quest with book research. I'll be sure to share some tidbits here, but keep in mind that I have little experience myself; I'm simply repeating my findings.

Guess What Was For Dinner

Cornbread & Paula Deen's White Bean Chili.

I think the Betty Crocker white bean chili is better, actually. But Paula's favored those with a super-spicy palette, so of course Dylan loved it. :)

I Love All Little Birdies

but they never hold still long enough to see!

The Meanest Mom

Great thanks to Bill, who told me about THE MEANEST MOM: a blog with the wittiest prose I have read in ages. 'Meanest Mom' posts true stories of her family, and they're awesome. My favorite posts thus far have been her responses to "Car Booster Seats," "The Cake," and "The Nudists." "Soccer Shoes" was also good.

Tee hee hee hee. It sort of reminds me of when some of my nephews complained about the food they got for dinner, and my brother (their father) decided that until they learned to be grateful for what they had they could eat oatmeal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Oooooh, so effective!

Some Teachers Are Just Better Than Others

 

This guy was so awesome his students spontaneously called him "General," and on occasion would genuflect. "All hail General H!" Tee hee. Props to Brother Huntington, ancient studies professor at the JC.

I Want Some Challah

 

Today Ben Jehuda Street Bakery must smell so good. I want challah bread. Happy Friday, everybody!

Bruce the Shark

Stephen Spielberg is shown here inside the mouth of the Jaws shark. Jaws' official name was "Bruce," named after Spielberg's lawyer at the time because Steven's joke around the set was that "Bruce is chasing after me!"

Fact: the Finding-Nemo-Bruce was named Bruce specifically as an homage to Jaws. 

Box of Chocolate Surprise

Every day you'll cross something you did not expect. Every day requires a new challenge and some fresh resolve to meet it. By providence, there is also a fresh-daily strength that can be obtained from God on high, and he will always give it. He promised,

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee. (Isaiah 41:10)

I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content...
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.(Philippians 4:13)

So if a chocolate from your box seems like more than you can chew, call for help. I know you'll get it.

Adventure Passed

Photo taken at the county courthouse in Carthage, Illinois on tour with the BYU International Folk Dance Ensemble. My legs are visible near the left of the picture, since I managed sound levels for the band. 

This year I won't be involved at all with a Folk Dance team, which is strange after devoting so much of my life to it. All my friends were there, along with everything I loved about school. I'm gonna miss these people. 

As a matter of interest, can you spot Dylan?

Iron Man at a ComicConvention

Hey, Iron Man! Can you get these wrinkles out of my cape? Hee hee hee.