wow!! you have missed SO much!!

Ok.... so I've done a horrible job at blogging the last couple of months!! I'll try to do better now that school is out for awhile!! A lot of time has went by since my last post... a lot of great things and not so great things have happened!! I of course don't remember most of them so I will try not to be too boring with my little bit of Mandy's Life knowledge!! Sad when Mandy has no facts on her own life!! Yeah it was just that hectic!!  And btw... there won't be a book review this blog!! Not because I haven't read a bazillion of them but because I just don't feel like doing it. I'll have one next week though... I read the next book of those Lucky Harbor books I've been telling you guys about and I wanna share. Just not today! And yes I am aware my blog is full of grammatical errors... I'm just not in the mood for grammar today either!!

April:
          Boy was that an interesting month... Me my mom and Candie tried something new!! Didn't know the results would be so good!! I so enjoyed our adventure together that Candie and I are doing it again. If you can't tell what our adventure was then I'm not telling you!! You are now on my I don't like you list. In April I learned that I now hate apples... yup hatem!! I learned you can live without sweet tea but it's extremely painful annnnnd melba toast is not toast its a freaking hard as a rock crouton!! A yucky crouton at that!! I know I saw several movies with L-nel but I swear I can't name them.  My stepdad fixed the a/c in my car thank goodness since it was about to get hot! Goodness... you say April and I immediately draw a huge blank!! What I do remember about April was that I was sick!!

May:
          This month is a little fresher in my mind lol. Let's see... Lionela and I went to the midnight premiere of the Avengers. Awesome movie and we had a great time. Even though I had a drunk man dressed like Thor on one side and Lionela had a crazy lady on her other side. And since the movie tavern had just fired their entire staff and gotten all new employees... well let's just say the service really really sucked. Hmmm... then I took Riah and my dad's gf's daughter Taylor to Casa Manana to see Annie. It was really amazing. I loved it and so did the girls. The young girl that played Annie did a very good job. I can't wait to go back to another show and see something else. I had forgotten how much I love live theater. Then there was Mother's day that I spent with my mom seeing Think Like A Man... If you haven't seen this movie welllllll you should. It was hilarious and soooo true on so many levels. Everyone in the theater was laughing the whole time. I also scored some new clothes that day... that my mom paid for... free stuff is the best stuff!! Ohhh and my brother asked Lerin to marry him although I wasn't there for that I knew it was happening. And I saw the pictures so I feel like I was there. Thennnn Lionela and I went and saw Dark Shadows  with our man Johnny Depp. At first I was scared cuz I have this theater phobia where I can't be alone in the theater without other people but a young guy and an old guy came. The old guy turned out to be a weirdo but since he was a funny weirdo we didn't mind too much. He would laugh loud and long like a whole minute after whatever was funny had passed. The next day my brother left for Afghanistan so I didn't really do anything fun :(!! And of course there was Manduh's birthday celebration at Abuelos. OMG.... my food was horrible. I got sour cream enchiladas. Maybe if I had gotten something else it would have been ok but Lerin, My dad and my mom all said their food was a no go. Buuuut it was Manduh's birthday and she loved her food so that was the important thing. Plus.... Dad bought a cake from sweet imaginations and I just love them.... I really really do. No really I do. They also have amazing cookies. Even though I didn't like my food... It was a really great and fun night. I do so love our family get togethers... only 10 of that was sarcasm I really do like em... don't tell anyone though!! Then on Sunday I went to a MaryKay party at Sister Williams and got to see Janna and Bethany and Charity (too bad Lauren wasn't there). Hadn't seen them in forever and I got a facial. Facials are GREAT! I really liked my lip gloss... Fancy Nancy! When I run out of what I already have I know what I will be getting. I also want that travel bag... I like cool things even if I will never use them. All this would have been soooo much more fun.... if I weren't sick! yeah yeah I'm on it!!

This is one of the most amazing cookies I have ever tasted. Seriously.... Try these!!


Chocolate white chocolate chunk walnut cookies

2 - cups of flour
2 - teaspoons baking powder
1/4 - teaspoon salt
3/4 - cup butter or 1&1/2 sticks
1&1/2 - cups dark brown sugar NOT light
2 - eggs
1 - teaspoon vanilla
4 - squares baking chocolate (semi-sweet)
1 - pkg white chocolate chunks or chips
1 - cup chopped walnuts

Directions:
Heat oven to 350. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a plastic bowl; set aside.
Beat butter & sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium until light and fluffy. Add eggs & vanilla. Melt chocolate and add to sugar mixture. Slowly add flour until mixed well. Stir in white chunks and walnuts.
Drop by heaping tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
Bake 11 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet 1 minute before moving to wire racks.

OMG... all the lost whispered "stupid"s! sigh

I knooooooooowww.... I'm really behind and there is still so much to go over!! This blog is going to cover the week THE JERK aka my brother was home!! And aweeee man I just realized I didn't whisper "stupid" not one time while he was here... what the crap is up with that!?? I'll just have to do it extra when he gets back from afghanistan!! If you don't know what that is... it's something I've done to him for decades. For years no one knew I was actually doing anything all they knew was that he would all of a sudden freak out. I whisper stupid sooooo softly that no one hears me.... EXCEPT Pt. It's like he is so tuned to that word cuz it can be a crowded and loud room and he will hear. It used to drive him crazy that no one would hear and look at him like he was nuts. Now everyone knows but he still freaks out... just cuz they know doesn't mean anything as he is still the only one that hears me!! Ohhhhh the joys of being an older sibling.

The Picnic:
          Here we have the welcome home before you leave picnic! Ha. We decided to have this here picnic at Warren Park in Burlesonm Pt's first full day back home. And it was a chance for Pt to meet my dad's girlfriend and her daughter before there was other people around to make an uncomfortable situation even more uncomfortable. We had subs, chips, pasta salad and cupcakes. Turquoise cupcakes of course. And a dumb boy game to see if we could fit an entire cupcake in our mouths. We found out that both my brother and my dad can fit an entire cupcake in their mouths. I for one can not. I also learned that even though I love mustard on my french fries... I DO NOT love a mouthful of yellow mustard. Of course I realized the minute I said,"I don't want any stupid mustard" what my jerk of a brother was about to do. I didn't even put up much resistence because that usually ends with someone getting hurt and that someone is usually me. I bruise easy and my bones have been known to break easily also. I know what you are waiting for.... you want me to tell you what he did. He held my head and filled my mouth completely full of the "stupid mustard" I had said I didn't want. All I have to say is thank goodness for water and cupcakes. That was really awful. I'm sure you are wondering about the picture above since it is the picture depicting something from our picnic. Well... I will tell you about it. Most Roberts wont even need an explanation they will just need 2 words. Basketball and Roberts. We Roberts like to make every sport a contact sport. Lots of insults and lots of blood. There used to be a fake nail on that finger with the blood pooled under the nail. It was ripped off after a particular insult. I don't even remember how I insulted but I do remember the ripping off of the nail and the laughter after he saw the pain on my face and the damage to my poor nail. You people may think we are the waltons but I promise you we are a sick and twisted version.

Swooshy Bangs:
            Me and my mom took a spa day and got our hair did. I also got a new pair of shoes. She changed her color and I finally got my swooshy bangs fixed... Oh how I love my swooshy bangs. I just wished that my hair didn't grow so fast. As you can see I have no problem taking my picture with rollers in my hair. It doesn't bother me at all. My mom wouldn't take a picture until she was 100% done getting ready. She is not the camera ham her two children are. I'm pretty sure my brother and I take enough pictures to make up for her and my dad hating the camera. In this picture we were about to leave for Texas Roadhouse. This was a super fun night. In fact I have 2 more pictures for this particular night.

  

Nerdy Nerds:
           Ha... remember what I said about our camera fetish. We also like to make faces at the camera at the very last moment. This is something that totally ticks my dad off cuz while he's looking at us he thinks his picture will be a good one and right as he hits the button we both instantly morph to our goober versions. I think Lerin or my mom took this picture... I can't remember. But I do know we were at Texas Roadhouse in Mansfield for the Gma's birthday. I always try to put something together for her birthday. She was super excited that my brother got to be home for it. Even though we had a good time here... it wasn't a completely awesome place. I'm pretty sure they poisoned me. I was super sick about an hour after we ate. I'm kinda mean when I'm sick and if I remember right I might owe manduh an apology for snapping at her. They were having so much fun and I was a little irritated. Not by their fun but the constant chatter while I was trying to concentrate. Like every movement had me breathing deep and hoping I kept everything down. Which really sucked cuz it kinda put a damper on my night. And where we were going after was not somewhere I enjoyed being sick while doing that activity we were doing. :) I have a picture for that as well.

Matching Tats:
          And this would be that after birthday dinner activity. Me and PT drug my mom, Lerin and Manduh to a tattoo place. Where we got a matching tattoo. I of course asked the guy to cut mine down because my arm is smaller than PT's and the size they put on him just wouldn't have worked. He says that makes me a sissy but it doesn't. There is very little difference in the size of the tattoo but just enough that it fit my wrist and not wrap around my whole arm.  Our artist was hilarious. He made the entire experience way more fun. Except of course I was still trying to hold my chicken critter salad down. And the fried pickles I stole from PT. Those are probably what poisoned me. Not that you guys care but I wasn't able to continue to hold down my food the whole night. I eventually became too sick and lost everything. Luckily I was back at the hotel and amazingly I felt so good afterwards. After I showered with a sprite that is. Yeah I don't shower with beer, I shower with sprite. Had I have just gone ahead and thrown up earlier in the night I would have a way more fun time. Since even though I was sick I had such a grand time I can't even imagine how the night would have gone. But I do have a permanent reminder of the night Texas Roadhouse poisoned me!!

Enlighten Me:

          Who knew bowling could be sooooo enlightening.... I sure didn't. I wouldn't say it was my favorite experience of the week but we managed to have a ton of fun even with the occasional hiccups. I do know I should have freaking won that last game. I was soooooo far ahead and just putting the whoop on them. Who would have ever guessed my brother would get three strikes in the tenth frame and beat me by six points. Yeah as a Roberts it's just in me to not take that loss well. If I had had a sharp object he would have left the bowling alley with it protruding from his body. Probably his eye. We take anything we play very very seriously. No whiners and no quiting... just revenge and cheating. As I've said before... we are the twisted version of the waltons. After bowling... My mom, me, Pt and Lerin went to the Hulen Movie Tavern (one of my favorite places!!) and watched A Thousand Words with Eddie Murphy. I had almost forgotten how hilarious my brother's high pitched squeal of a laugh is. His laugh makes any movie a million times better. But what makes a movie a million times better than that is a Tropical Thnder smoothie that is brought right to your chair. I do so love those things. The movie tavern makes the best smoothies ever.

From my Nook:
          If you read my last blog then you were introduced to the bachelor uncles that are raising their neice. This is book number two. Another uncle who has sworn off commitment will fall!! That would be Uncle Sam. :) The wine maker. Who is the woman who will eventually be in his life?? Lucy. She's a glass maker who has a little sister who is sooooo spoiled due to a childhood illness that she gets whatever she wants even if it belongs to Lucy. After Lucy's fiance tells her on her birthday that he has been sleeping with her sister for a long time and now wants her to move out so that her sister can move in... she meets Sam. After a long line of embarrassing and hilarious events... they end up stuck in his house together with him taking care of Lucy due to an injury that keeps her from walking for a while. And showering without help is a no go as well. And of course there is the little neice and also some magic. No not romantic magic even though there is some of that... I'm talking about real magic. Lucy has a secret as to what she can do with glass. Sam has a secret as to what he can do with plants. What is no secret is that this is a really good book. Lisa Kleypas always delivers a great read and this is no exception. I can't wait for the book to come out that tells all about the third and final uncle's fall.

That's a lie... Oooooh YUM!!... WTF are you doing!?!

The title is a little random but you will soon understand why!! This entire blog is about some kind of edible thing... except for the book. Although it's also edible if you are into that kind of thing!! Don't come to my house if you are... I will cut you!!

           Ok... it says right there on the package that it sweetens just like sugar! Measurement for measurement!! Yeah... THAT'S A LIE!! I was so excited to try it cuz I can't find any low calorie sweetener that doesn't have a horrible after taste. I am a sugar snob! So this package of low calorie sugar blend had me thooper dooper ethcited!! Oh goodness let me tell you of my devastation!! Have you ever used the amazing Kaboom toilet bowl cleaning powder? The most amazing toilet bowl cleaner I've ever used although it is hard to find the powder anymore.... but back on track... this toilet bowl powder is dumped in your toilet and left to sit for awhile. When the powder is dumped into the water it starts foaming and growing until the foam is all the way to the seat. Pretty cool to watch when it's your cleaning solution! Not fun to watch when it's the sugar you had such high hopes for. It just started foaming up just like my beloved toilet bowl cleaner. I am obsessive about my toilet bowl lol ask my friend Candie... I have a blue water obsession that I confessed to her recently!! Anyway... back to the sugar. It foamed and grew and foamed and grew! How did it taste you ask... Aweful! It was ten times worse than sweet n low and the texture in my mouth made me gag!! So the only thing the package told the truth about was that it had less calories!!

           Oooooh YUM... I love almost anything with the word TACO in it!! And this here Taco Soup is no exception. It is super super good, but I wouldn't eat it every day if I were you. It's not super high in calories but high enough it shouldn't be a frequent flyer!

Taco Soup
1 - pound ground beef
1 - can corn, undrained
1 - can chili beans, undrained
1 - can of petite diced tomatoes, undrained (or ro-tel)
1 - pkg taco seasoning
1 - can fiesta cheese soup
tortilla chips
shredded cheese

Directions:
           In a large pot, season ground beef with salt and pepper then brown. Drain off any fat. Add all remaining ingredients with the exception of the chips and shredded cheese. Cook 15 minutes on medium and serve over crushed chips topped with shredded cheese. you can add lettuce and sour cream if you like!! So easy and so good!

           Hmmm... does that look disgusting?? It will when you hear the story. We call Junie Mikey for a reason. Ever seen the old cereal commercial that says,'' give it to mikey he will eat anything!"? yeah well that is why we call Junie Mikey. She will eat anything. Her mixtures can sometimes be disgusting... like her peanut butter and bologna sandwiches! How gross does that sound?? On this particular day that I took this picture Junie and I were in the kitchen and she was watching me get me something to eat for lunch. She suddenly asks me if she can make her some oatmeal. I say yes and go on about my business. She makes her oatmeal, adds her splenda and starts eating. I am eating leftover chicken enchiladas from the night before. She is watching me. Then all of a sudden she says,'' Mandy can I have that?'' and points to the last enchilada cold right out of the fridge. I of course tell her yes. And then I stand by and watch in absolute horror as she scoops out the cold cold enchilada and it's cold cold sour cream sauce with cheese on top and hovers it above her bowl of oatmeal. I burst out with ''WHAT ARE YOU DOING??.... PLEASE tell me you aren't about to do what I think you are'' She replies back with,'' I sure am'' I'm like,''Junie that enchilada is COLD'' and she immediately fires back as she plops it down in her oatmeal,''yeah but my oatmeal is hot.'' Like that totally made sense right!! After she was done eating she said,'' thank you mandy that was goood'' as if I had prepared that horrific meal for her. To this day I gag a little when I think of it. The picture just doesn't do it justice!!

From my Nook:

        Oh Lisa Kleypas... One of my favorite authors. This is the first book of three and you will just fall in love with the little girl in this book being raised by her bachelor uncles. Of course by the end of the book she has one less uncle with bachelor status... that's just how these romantic dramas go. A young widow, a grumpy uncle (hot though) and a little girl that has asked Santa for a mother as her only Christmas wish. Read this book. It will make you sigh. I promise. Not as long a review as I normally do buuuuuut I ran out of time... got to get to work!! READ this book!!

Do you like midnight premieres?? We do!!

I know... I know... I'm wayyyyyyy behind!!! This last month was busy busy with everything that went on! So busy I don't even remember most of what went on! A couple of things stand out in my mind buttttttttttttttttt, if you read my most recent fb post you know that I have decided to become a nice girl and get rid of that mean one that sometimes takes over! But luckily I took a couple of visual aids and I can at least tell you about the pictures!!! 

          My L-nel! We love midnight premieres she and I!! They are so freaking funtastic! It could also be that we have so much fun together. Our most recent midnight premiere was the dun dun dun... Hunger Games!! Loved the book... loved the movie!! What a good ending to what started as a rough day. Sooooo... my brother was on leave for the week and came home. My mom drove up from college station and got a hotel so she could spend some of that time with him. Welllllll... the day before she hurt herself and I had to spend the hours before Lionela got out of school listening to her moan every time she breathed. Yes I know... she was in pain blah blah blah. It was hilarious :) How did she hurt herself you ask?? well I'd be delighted to tell you. She was in one of those stand up tanning beds... and she decided to do something most people don't do in a tanning bed. She decided... "I'm gonna exercise!!" which led to her hurting her back barely being able to walk and when she did she was hunched like an old crone!! ohhhh and don't forget the moaning. She definitely provided a lot of laughs for Lionela and I!! I guess I shouldn't have laughed because karma seems to always find me IMMEDIATELY!! It's like that hag has me on speed dial I swear!I get dressed and start putting on the boots that went with that outfit and when I went to zip up the second one.... the zipper popped right off!! Those boots were NOT cheap!! annnnndd I had decided to get dressed at my mom's hotel and only had a pair of plaid sneaks! yeah... you could definitely say they didn't match!! My mom and Lionela let me knowwww they didn't match... repeatedly!! They also laughed at me after I left the room because I could see them in the mirror making fun!! Luckily I had a different shirt and pants that would go with those shoes but they just werent midnight premierish clothes sooooo I was bummed about that for like 23 and a half seconds!! Then we left for our fun night out!! Lionela has this quirk where every song that plays she tries to imitate the singer... no matter how high... or how DEEP that singer's voice is!! It's hilarious and something I wish everyone could see or should I say hear!! We love to laugh at each other because we are both quirky nerdy nerds!! So we finally get to the Hulen Movie Tavern because it's the best one ever... and we are still laughing and having a good time... and then well we weren't having a good time because even though lionela had bought her ticket a month before... her ticket wasn't showing up!! After like 30 minutes the manager took car of us and we got to cut to the front of the line and got vip service... we had such great vip service that we were our waiters only 2 customers... he was at our or should I say Lionela's beck and call. She was hungry and thirsty that night and kept him hopping... plus the delivery guys who she dubbed "HEY" ran errands for her also. :) The movie was great. I loved it. I was really surprised that they did such a good job. I was also surprised there was as much comedy as there was! Gotta love Ceasar!! So if you haven't read  the book... read it! If you've read the book... watch the movie!! Both are awesome!! Now I'm excited about our next midnight premiere and we don't even know what it is yet!!

I hate......

     There are so many things I love and are thankful for... but they all come with those little annoying things we hate!! Like I love to sleep but I hate my alarm clock. I love to cook but I hate to do dishes. I love to go places but I hate to buy gas. I love to go swimming but I hate wet clothes (yes even a wet swimsuit). I love to read but I hate having to stop to pee. I love my phone but I hate that the battery is always almost dead. I love how I feel after an hour of zumba but I hate (well I hate everything) the morning after zumba. I love Fruity Pebbles but I hate milk. I love my friends but I well... lets just say some of the spouses need to go! I love having my nails done but I hate not understanding a word the nail tech says to me the entire time. I love my laptop but I hate that it is mostly used for homework. But all those good things are definitely worth the irritating things that come with them!! :)

   

I hate....... popcorn!:

          But I love going to the movies!! Especially when Channing Tatum is going to be on the screen. Friday Amanda and I went to the movies to see The Vow. First time we had been to the movies together in over five years! It was a really great movie and even though we almost died like twice... It was a really fun time. Although the food was horrible (Casa Rita on western center) and I spent like 2 hours sitting in standstill traffic. We saw this lady that should have checked the mirror before she left. Three words... O... M...and G!! Speaking of OMG, Zac Efron!! He has a new movie coming out called The Lucky One and boy if that isn't the most appropriate title!! Just conjuring the preview in my head has made me speechless!! Soooooooo moving on!

I hate........ chickens! :

           But I loooooovveeee baby chicks. They are so cute and tiny!! And hilarious. Have you ever watched one go to sleep?? Cutest/funniest thing you will ever see. They just drop dead wherever they were standing and land in the most awkward positions. It's like in the movies when a robot is turned off the way they just shut down and their head drops... that's kinda like a baby chicken. This weekend was vaccination day. Even though I hate that the babies are being stuck with a needle almost as big as they are, I love vacc day! Tons of babies and Gypsy is like a mother hen/yorkie trying to make sure they are all safe and she wants to see every single one of them to make sure they are ok. I've never seen a dog that had her own animals. She has chickens, her very own evil kitty, a horse and she had a rabbit but he's missing. She's worse than I am about collecting random animals!!

I hate..... Scary movies! :

           But I love the adrenaline rush I get from them even though I know I'm going to be checking every inch of my backseat every time I get in my car. And I'm going to be avoiding the rear view mirror for months. And I will not sleep until I'm totally exhausted and can no longer keep my eyes open. I have an insanely active imagination and scary movies are just a dumb thing for me to do. But as I said... I love the adrenaline rush even though I don't actually see much of the movie :)!! I'm told I'm pretty entertaining to watch one with. In fact anyone who has ever watched a scary movie with me will tell you that I'm the best form of entertainment! I went with Lionela to see the black lady against my better judgement. I had seen (ok that's a lie... I had HEARD) the previews and even though it wasn't as scary as most... well I'm a big old baby. She had a grand ole time laughing at me. We have watched many many movies together but we had never watched a scary movie together. She was highly entertained with my antics. If she only knew that was tame compared to my usual. It will be awhile before she gets to see it again because I'm going to need at least a year to recover. I even chose a really small version of the picture because I was afraid if it was any bigger I'd be able to see something I didn't want to. Yes I'm aware I need therapy!!

I hate.........   Beer!! :

           But I love Almond Joys! If this really tastes like an almond joy I could see where one might become an alcoholic!

From my Nook to yours!:

           The last blog of the month which means... It's a historical book!! This one is about those Highlanders!! And it's only like $1.99!! I think. Don't hold me to that! In this book, Laurel is a tiny half English/ half Scottish highland beauty with a feisty personality. She is on her way from England to the highlands to live with her Highland laird grandfather when her and her escorts are attacked and she is taken by a monster of a man. She escapes after a beating and stumbles across another highland laird and his band of men. Laird McTiernay also known as Connor is a buff, gorgeous chieftain. The laird used to being in control and having everyone do as he says meets his match in the small fireball he takes back home beaten and bruised. Convincing her to Marry him was only the beginning of his troubles! Actually that part was easy. It's everything that comes after!! It's an OhNo!! Hahaha!! OhNo!! Hahaha!! kind of book. If you've never read a historical before you are missing out. Start with this one. 









Seriously?? Thank God for the small things that keep me sane!

     Boy have I had a rough two weeks... which of course puts me behind on this thing AGAIN!! I'm like the worst blogger ever!! The kind of blogger that forgets to blog for long periods of time. However, when I'm upset, blogging is the last thing on my mind. These past two weeks just keeping my tears in check took up all of my concentration. I really think my car is out to get me. First I have a flat tire that I didn't notice until it was time for me to go to work. Then on FLR day my car wouldn't start and I was almost late. Next I find out I got a ticket for my front tires being over the white line at a red light even though I was in the turn only lane and you CAN turn on red!! After that my windshield wipers stopped working on the way to work in the middle of a downpour! And my inspection is due this month. I know it will pass but um after having the fuel filter changed and anything else that may go wrong before then... well I'm gonna be seriously lacking in the bank account!! Not that my bank account isn't ever not lacking but I'm worried she will spiral into a deep depression after this month!! lol! On top of the car problems I'm having other problems. Of course I won't talk about that here because I am just not one to post my drama and besides it would hurt feelings and I'm just not into that. Even if mine are never taken into account. But we all have that problem with our friends and family I'm sure. Hmmm... I just realized I have went all day without eating and it's dinner time. This totally confuses my brother because as a garbage disposal he just can't fathom how someone can forget to eat. I just do. Probably the same reason I could never meditate or do yoga, my brain is just complete and constant activity even in relaxation! I'm told it's a sign of genius :)! I'll go along with that! Those who know me would of course roll their eyes and say," yeah ok Mandy" I happen to be a well known goober.

FLR

We have had an FLR lunch since my last post!! I sooooooo love them and can't wait for the next one. This is a picture of me and Candie at this month's Girl's Lunch. Risky's BBQ in the stockyards. It was so much fun. I really love these girls. I only have this pic and not a group pic because we were having so much fun laughing and catching up that we forgot to do a group photo. But we won't let that happen again. Next time I will have a group photo to post. I blame Jessica Law. That girl is just hilarious and keeps us all rolling. I swear if it weren't for these times with my girls, I would seriously go insane. I feel so much better afterwards. I'm thinking the saying that laughter is the best medicine may have a ton of merit because it definitely goes a long way towards curing my chronic grumpiness for awhile. The next one is my responsibility... boo to that. Razoos in Arlington better be ready because we are invading there next month!! :) This is one of the small things that keep me sane!

Hyenas:

     Even though my hair smells like smoke for days... this is one of my favorite places. More of that medical laughter I guess. If you go to the early show the smoking isn't too bad though. Me and my cousin and some friends went this past Friday. Not only did I see the hottest guy I've seen in awhile... well we listened to the best comedian we've heard there so far. And we go often. Rob Little. Luckily I'm not a laugh and pee your pants kind of person because I was definitely laughing hard enough. And the guy before him was really good too. Usually the opener is better than the talent and this time even though the opener was good, the talent was way better. I get free tickets every couple of months so if anyone would be interested in going next time let me know and then I'll let you know lol! This is one of the small things that keep me sane!!

Book Review:

          My favorite of the Lucky Harbor books so far. Of course there are more books but they haven't been released yet so I've only gotten to read the couple of samples Jill has been sweet enough to share. I will say that I am really excited for May when book 4 comes out. Book 3: Head Over Heels. Chloe and Sawyer. Chloe is the wild child and the younger sister of the three. If you are confused as to what three I'm talking about then you need to not only read my last couple of blogs but you need to read the first two books. Chloe thinks isn't ready to give up her wild hippyish lifestyle even though she finds herself spending more and more time at the inn she owns with her two sisters. Even though they are both newly engaged and annoying. Even more annoying is Lucky Harbors sherriff who she has no idea used to be the town bad boy who keeps arresting her. Sawyer is the best friend of the two men engaged to her sisters. Meaning he is always around. I love books where the hero and heroine hate each other... I really like this one because it's the third book and they have been hating on each other since the beginning of book one! Sooooooo go buy it. But get the other two first if you haven't read them. This is one of the small things that keep me sane!! :)



       

Monthly Dessert: Cashew Butterscotch Bars

     I used peanuts instead of cashews but it was still really really good and different. I of course used more peanuts than what it called for.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 - cups flour

3/4 - cup of brown sugar

1/2 cup plus 2tbs - butter

1 - cup butterscotch chips



3/4 - cup corn syrup

1 - tsp water

1/4 - tsp salt

1 1/2 - cups cashew pieces

1 - cup white chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350.

2.Spray 9x13 pan

3. Combine flour and brown sugar in a mixing bowl.

4. Cut in butter until coarse & crumbly.

5. Press onto bottom of baking dish.

6.Bake 10 minutes. Remove and leave oven on.

7. Combine butterscotch chips, corn syrup, water and salt in a small saucepan and melt on low, stirring constantly until mixture is completely smooth.

8. Spread over crust. Sprinkle with nuts.

9. Bake 12-15 minutes until filling is hot and bubbly.

10. Remove from oven, place on wire rack to cool and sprinkle with white chocolate chips. cool and cut into bars

This is one of the small things that keep me sane!!

You want me to write something?? Take a number!

         

          I know I usually give lots of visuals in my blog but not this time. I just haven't had the time nor the inclination to take random storyboard pictures. They probably annoy you guys anyway. Speaking of annoying... writing this blog is annoying me today! I have done soooooo much writing the past couple of weeks that I just want to scream or cry or hit something. Whichever one takes less energy. That's the one I want. All my classes except math require a tremendous amount of writing. It's just essay after paper after essay after paper. I'm doing more than 1 paper a week and more than 3 essays a week and that's not counting the very little I'm getting to do on my special project. Yeah you know the one. It not only requires writing but it also requires my own thoughts. In fact it's made up ALL right from my very own brain (scary thought right?) where as the others I get to research and re-word what someone else has already thought up! So here I am a week and a half behind on my weekly blog session and I'm more annoyed about doing the blog than the fact that I'm behind. Which is something I don't like to be. Behind not annoyed. I think I actually kinda like being annoyed. Hmmm.

          I am going to be doing my bi-weekly book review on the second book to the series I talked about last time but I also want to talk about The Hunger Games. Which is the first book in the Hunger Games trilogy. One word... INTENSE. Those books were the worst and the best I have ever read. If that doesn't make sense to you then you haven't read them and you really should. The movie comes out next month. I'm going to be right there for the midnight premiere... along with my movie buddy Lionela! I'm so lucky to have someone like me that will pretty much watch anything. You don't know if a movie is good unless you watch it. And if it stinks then you can bet we had fun laughing the whole time. I really love going to the movies but there is nothing better than premiere night!! :)

          If you guys aren't going to join the March of dimes team then you need to donate. Under my name not those other people... I want to win a tshirt!! :) and help the babies of course. Although I would rather you join our team and walk with us. it's only like 3.5 miles. Plus you will be having so much fun you wont even realize you are doing something physical and you will even be sad when it's over. Yup they are that much fun!! So join or donate... those are the only 2 choices I'm giving you!

          Should I or should I not go brown. Meaning my hair of course. You've seen my complexion... my skin will never be brown. So I've been debating this question for almost a year and I always chicken out (same thing with the nose ring I've wanted for several years)! Sooo I'm thinking of going like a honey brown. Something that's not too different from my natural ugly red/brown/blonde. Am I too light skinned to be a brunette? I'll let you know next Monday if I chickened out or not!!

          Oh yeah... no matter what Diana says, all drive through car washes smell like urine. I've suspected this for years now but I know for sure now. I posted on my facebook about a month ago asking people if they thought they smelled like urine also and was told it was the car wash I was using. Well I'm not a car wash snob. I use whichever one is handy. There are 500 just in Burleson alone! So my experiment was to try 3 different ones in a 3 week period and see if ANY of them smelled good or at least better than my predicted urine theory. The great thing about experiments is that the truth always comes out! And the truth is.... Drive through car washes smell like urine. And not even human urine its like a mixture of all types. Important question: Will I stop using drive through car washes just because they smell like urine? Nope... I am not about to wash my own car in February. Maybe may and October but the other months are either too cold or too hot! the joys of being a Texan. You only have to hand wash your car two months out of the year... downside: it will smell like pee. I guess that's better than what it could smell like :)

          First blog of the month means a new recipe!!

7-Layer Mexican Meatloaf

Ingredients:

2 - lbs ground beef

1 - 4oz pkg cream cheese, softened

1/2 - cup sour cream

1 - pkg taco seasoning

1/2 - cup bread crumbs

1 - egg

1 - can refried beans

1/2 - cup picante (i used a little more)

2 - cups shredded mexican blend cheese

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375*.

2. Mix ground beef, cream cheese, sour cream, taco seasoning, salsa, egg, and refried beans in a

    large bowl until well combined.

3. Transfer to loaf pan and shape. or I sometimes use a casserole dish. whatever is handy.

4. Down the center make a 1/2 inch deep and 2 inch wide indention with a spoon or your finger.

5. Bake an hour.

6. Top with cheese and bake 25 more minutes

Bi-Weekly Book Recommendation!

          This is the second book in the lucky harbor series and I'm excited to let you know that there are 6 books altogether. With each book the story just keeps getting better and better because there are so many characters you already know so well. I think that's why I love series so much more than single title stand alones. If you read the first one then you already know Tara and Ford. Tara is the oldest of the 3 sisters and is keeping a secret... a secret that explains why she hates Ford who she claims to have never met before her and her sisters moved to the small coastal town of lucky harbor. But there is one thing about lucky harbor... no one has a secret. Ford is the best friend of Jax who happens to be the Jax we all met and fell in love with in the first book. Yeah the one that just so happens to be dating Tara's younger sister. Which means Tara has to put up with seeing Hot Sailor Ford all the time. I loved this book. I loved the next one even more. But you will have to wait until my next recommendation to hear about Chloe and Sawyer. Chloe = wild child, Sawyer = sherriff. :)







It all started with a Beluga whale!!

Behold... The Beluga Whale!!



          I know you are all wondering about the title. Well Candie probably isn't but that's because she was my cohort in crime. But the title fits believe me. I had a week of bad ordeal after bad ordeal after bad ordeal! And it all really did start with a Beluga whale. Cute and sweet as those things may be... when used incorrectly they can cause a weeks worth of havoc. Lesson learned. Do not make fun of things that you aren't supposed to. You know like things that God himself has created!! And definitely don't go so far as to google pictures and share with your cohort!! And absolutely DO NOT include witty captions with the pictures! As funny as it was, and I will admit even after the hectic week I have had... I still giggle, but I will try my best to never ever poke fun of the Beluga whale or anything that may creepily resemble it!! :) Now onto that weeks worth of havoc and shall I say SEVERAL visits from that person we all know as KARMA!! But first I'll let you in on the good stuff! Just like any storm there is always those beautiful moments of absolute peace before the next wave hits!

Rootbeer Buttercream Icing

I just have to share this recipe. I love icing and I really love buttercream icing and one of my favorite things to do when I have time, money and it happens to be a splurge day (which is only once a month) is to experiment with different flavors of homemade buttercream icing. January's dessert splurge day was rootbeer. Here is the recipe so you too can splurge. And those of you who don't have a kitchen aide mixer... you really really SHOULD!! I know they are really expensive but I swear they are one of the best inventions EVER! As far as icing goes you can't get creamier. And not a single lump in my mashed potatoes. Sooooo GET ONE!!

Ingredients:

KITCHEN AIDE MIXER :)

1/2  -  cup of solid vegetable shortening

1/2  -  cup (or 1 stick) of butter, softened

1     -  teaspoon of rootbeer extract (or like me... you can put any flavor extract you want!!)

4     -  cups sifted powdered sugar

2     -  tablespoons of milk

Directions:

          In a mixing bowl with an electric mixer, cream shortening and butter. Make sure it is really creamy and kinda fluffy before moving on to the next step. Add vanilla and mix 20 more seconds. Gradually add sugar one cup at a time and beating really good before adding the next cup. Make sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl often with a spoon or spatula. When all the sugar has been mixed in it will look kinda dry. Add the milk and mix until it is light and fluffy and creamy good.

I love HUGE page counts!!!





         Luckily on Saturday my imaginary friends, Harlowe and Fletcher, came out to play. It's always fun when they do that of course but Saturday they were here for 11 pages. I can usually coax them out for 2 to 5 and on a really good day 6 but never more than that in one day. I had to take like 10 pictures before I got one that had all the words blurry. Technology today really drives me crazy when I'm actually trying to take a bad picture. The stuff on my screen isn't ready to be shared. Although I will give you a hint... It includes Harlowe, a rope, a can of gasoline and a chair! Hmmm... maybe I shouldn't watch BONES on the days I know Harlowe and Fletcher are stopping by. Just in case you guys haven't figured it out yet... My imaginary friends talk to me. They want me to write their story and I have decided to oblige them. I'm ready to get their story over with because Jordan has started visiting me also and he is just as insistant that his story be heard as well!!

Karma Pt. 1



How I know it was Karma caused by the beluga whale?? An hour or so after my ''fun'', the most important flash drive I own came up missing.  I searched every little spot I had ever been in my entire life. This particular flash drive contains a year and several months worth of hard work. I was in major panic mode. I only save the 3 chapters I'm working on at the time to my computer. It may be chapters 3, 14, and 35. Not a book that will make. And even if I got the chapters that I have sent Candie, I would still have been missing more than 10 chapters. I knew in my heart if I never found that drive I would more than likely give up. It would have just been too great a loss. But after 4 days of searching I finally found it laying on the table out in the open like it had been there all the time. I know it couldn't have been. I searched a million times. I will never believe that it had been laying there the whole time. Junie would have been like,'' Hey Mandy is this it?" She has a special finder power. So I have my f drive back and I am not letting it out of my site. I am going to be getting another f drive just in case. I never want to experience that kind of panic again.

Karma Pt 2 & 3

So the day after the missing Flash drive, I find out that all my classes have been dropped for non payment and class registration was over except they were doing late registration (which they charge you a $20 fee for). Somehow my financial aid didn't get put in AGAIN!! 2 semesters in a row! I'm just glad it was done fast enough for me to still get some classes even though I ended up with an entirely different schedule... that's after I had bought the supplies for those other classes. After spending an ENTIRE and EXHAUSTING day sitting at the school talking to DIFFERENT people trying to get my stuff worked out things finally started looking up! It was an extremly long day and tears were involved. So pt 2... After getting everything worked out with my classes and financial aid I go down to the campus bookstore and round up 595$ worth of books for my new classes. Luckily I had gotten my financial aid worked out or it would have been $5.95 worth of books. Which may have gotten me a package of pencils. So after spending an hour waiting in line at the bookstore I go home with my new schedule and my new books!! I am a happy happy girl at this point. I get up early Friday morning and head to school for my first set of classes of 2012. I LOVED the classes so I'm like ok maybe this schedule thing was meant to be. My English professor was fun and upbeat and a lot like one of my English teachers from high school. So it was just an awesome first day even though I was a week behind the other students due to the whole schedule drop fiasco! Then I wake up on Saturday morning and I have an email in my student mail telling me my English course has been cancelled and I need to go back to the couseling center and get my schedule fixed becuase thanks to financial aid I have to have a certain amount of hours. This is just bad news since this was the class that I was the most excited about. Bummer. However when I called the bookstore to see if I could do something about the book I had bought I found out that I am going to have go and fight with them (I"ll let you know what happens next week) because even though I never got to use the book.... I opened the book so I won't get a full refund. I'll have to sell it back as a used book! I have no use for that book because the other English professor I'll hopefully be switching to doesn't use that book. And the book wont be used again after this semester. Soooo Monday morning I'm off to try to get another English course ( that I'll now be 2 weeks behind in) and to buy another 100$ book and to hopefully get my money back on the other. Karma is apparently still upset with me. I'm just hoping she doesn't make me name my first born Beluga!!



Bi-Weekly Book Review

Book one in the Lucky Harbor series. A series about 3 sisters and 3 best friends. This is a new author to me but she was recommended to me from an author I have loved for years. This author's writing style is a lot like my favorite author Nora Roberts who is amazing but she isn't putting out books fast enough for me since I am an extremely avid reader. So if you love Nora Roberts or Lisa Kleypas you will love Jill Shalvis' Simple Irresistible. The main characters are Maddie Moore and Jax Cullen. Maddie is the middle sister that just escaped an abusive relationship that had cost her her job. Now she's headed to a small coastal town to meet up with her sisters and look over their inheritance from their recently deceased mother. She's the sweet, quiet, clumsy peace maker that never stands up for herself and does everything to keep everyone happy. And she has given up men. Especially lawyers and lawyer types. Jax is the small town mayor, co owns a bar with one of his best friends, his other best friend is the sherriff, he owns a construction company and he used to be a big city lawyer. Plus he is well... a man. A gorgeous one. Basically everything on Maddie's "I don't think so list! I loved this book. It made me literally laugh out loud. And you can relate to each characters own personality and their individual problems. It's full of fun and you feel like you are actually reading about real people not the unbelievable ones authors sometimes dream up!! Soooo... If you are a reader, put it on your list!!

3 months of living, packed in to 3 minutes of reading!!

Since I only have three minutes to highlight three months of my life I'm just going to choose topics that I took the time to take a picture!! Hopefully I will be able to blog more often so I won't have to do the boring version again!!

Cake, Torture and Breaking Dawn!

Three of my favorite things... cake, L-nel and I torturing my dad and midnight movie premieres. Especially if those premieres include a shirtless werewolf. Even if shirtless werewolf is practically a minor!! Even though I don't like chocolate cake... that camo buttercream icing was amazing! What made the cake extra yummy is that my dad wasn't there but really wanted some of that cake. He even tried to get me to cut him a piece before I even took it to my aunts birthday party. I am not the kind of person that takes an already eat on cake to someone's birthday party. However, I am the kind of person that poses with her partner in crime with the coveted chocolate cake and sends her dad the picture via text message!! If you know my dad, you know that his reaction was highly entertaining!! He is such a DRAMA QUEEN!! Now to the shirtless werewolf part. A part I almost missed because it was a school night and I was extremely exhausted. If you have seen Breaking Dawn part 1 you know that the shirt comes off in the first 5 seconds of the movie and then NEVER AGAIN!! And I woulda missed it because Lionela said (with an evil laugh) if I fell asleep she would wait until the movie was half over to wake me! Luckily I can't sleep when I'm cold and after them making us wait outside for an hour in the FREEZING COLD I was like a popsicle. A grumpy popsicle!! Even tired I love midnight premieres. Even though crazy things always happen to me. But that's too long a story to tell even if it is entertaining. Next on our midnight list... The Hunger Games!! Can't wait!!

Another Year Older!

OLDER... I remember when I used to love that word and now that I am racing towards 30 it gives me nightmares. However I do love my birthday!! A day completely dedicated to me and what I want!! Actually my birthday this year wasn't as good as it normally is. But going to Los Vaqueros with my family was great! Manduh brought cupcakes... which I love even more than cake!! My nephew Brayden who kept me entertained all night managed to get cupcake all over my right side!! I do love  7 year old boys with turquoise cupcakes!! Oh and just in case anyone needs this info... do not wear high heeled boots (no matter how great they are) in the stockyards!! Streets made of bricks are not a high heeled boots friend! They definitely aren't a clutzy girl's friend!! I almost died. I saw my life flash before my eyes. Actually that was the car that drove past headlights but I didn't know that at the time. Next year I'm thinking my birthday will be great! No near death accidents allowed!! 

Indians Go To State!!

Thousands of Alvarado people! Most of my facebook friends were there... and saw maybe 5 of them! 2 of them were with me lol!! Craziest thing ever but soooooo much fun!! well the 9 dollar nacho thing wasn't that fun. but since I wasn't really hungry just sentimental I didn't stupidly buy any!! My first time in Cowboy stadium and it was an Alvarado game :) a game that Alvarado ALMOST and SHOULDA won!! Best and funniest thing of the night was Manduh threatening to punch an OLD lady in the face because she had to pee and the lady wouldn't let her in!! We should go to high school games more often. They bring out our inner children and we let them run around being naughty!!

Jiggle Butt Run 2012

Team Jiggalicious! I love 5Ks. Even more I love doing them with friends who also love 5Ks. They are so much fun and they are for a good cause. Fun and helping people... great stuff!! Since this was a little over a week ago I remember this event better than the others.  We saw some things that really make you go "WHOA!!" and "someone should have stopped her"!! But since those things are entertaining to me... I loved the crazies!! Crazies make me smile !! I really wish the others in our team would have came. I'm one those "the more the merrier" kind of people but in a way it was really nice just me and Candie. We shared more in this 3 point whatever miles than we have in awhile. Even though you talk to someone several times a week seeing them in person makes you realize you can still miss them!! Thank goodness for FLR and 5Ks!! And thank goodness for a tiny piece of my car keys sticking out of my trunk from where I shut my keys in there! This is not the first time I've done this but it is the first time I haven't had to call a locksmith to get my keys out of my trunk!! And it is the first time someone has posted it on facebook for all to see!! I have issues with my keys and my trunk! which is why I love trucks! BTW... I'm putting together a team for the march of dimes if anyone is interested!! I'll have more info at the beginning of February!

Recipe Monday!!

Bacon Ranch Chicken!!

Thank you Crockin Girls!



 Ingredients:

4  -  Boneless skinless chicken breasts

2  -  tbsp real bacon bits

1  -  pkg ranch dressing mix

1  -  teaspoon minced garlic

1  -  can cream of chicken soup

1  -  cup soup cream

2  -  cups cooked egg noodles

Directions:

1. Combine bacon, Garlic, ranch dressing mix, soup and sour cream; mix well.

2. Pour over chicken in the crock pot.

3. Cook on high 3-4 hours.

4. Cook the noodles.

5. Shred the chicken and add the noodles: mix together.