Random Thoughts...Food, Firearms, and Fun

I've been volunteering with an organization for years, and have enjoyed it quite a bit, although at times, my volunteer and work activities seem to clash. I've been swamped at work. I've been working overtime and on weekends, and quite frankly, am looking forward to only having two rescue transports, a wine tasting and pig roast, rehearsal for Eastern Star, and lunch with a friend this weekend. I should add that I'm taking Friday off, as I needed to try to squeeze in Dream Dinners at some point and I simply could not find the time in the next week or so to do that without taking Friday off from work! I'd expressed my schedule to those in charge at the volunteer organization, and had been assured that they understood that work was my first priority. Unfortunately, no one there seems to recognize this, as they keep asking me to do things, and then only after I've completed it and pointed out that I've been swamped, have I received the response of, "Oh, ...

I didn't get home from Miami until 7:30 on Sunday evening, and then we stopped for dinner, so I really didn't get home until after 10 PM. I was too tired to consider pulling out anything for dinner on Monday. On Monday morning, before I left to head in to work, I grabbed the BBQ Chip Chicken Tenders with Dipping Sauce and left that in the sink to thaw. When Mac was on his way home from work, he asked what I wanted him to pull out to thaw, and I mentioned that I already had dinner thawing. When I let him know once I was headed home, he looked at the directions and turned the oven to the right temperature to preheat. I came home and, after reading the directions, noticed that it said to place the BBQ chips on a plate and then place each chicken tender on there, coating each with chips. I opted for a slightly different method, dumping the chips into a gallon-size Ziploc bag, adding the tenders, and shaking. It worked, and it kept us from having an extra plate to wash! This w...

Last week was rather crazy for me. I had a few deadlines at work and then I also had to prepare for the Dress for Success Professional Women's Group Success Summit. That was this past weekend, in Miami. We stayed at EPIC - A Kimpton Hotel, and it was amazing! Due to how crazy my week was going to be, I opted for very quick and easy meals last week for dinner. One of those was the Savannah Grill Chicken with Sweet Potato Fries. Mac is not a fan of sweet potatoes, so I knew the fries might not appeal to him, but I figured we'd try the chicken anyway. It was very easy to prepare, as I simply cooked the chicken in a skillet, then added the sauce, and baked the fries. I really enjoyed the flavor of the chicken and sauce, and I didn't mind the sweet potato fries. Mac said the fries were edible, although we both found that they were more enjoyable if we added a bit of the sauce to them. We did discuss that, with side items like that included with the entree, it would be nice...

I headed to work this morning, and realized that I'd forgotten to stick the check for our oil delivery outside. So, I headed back home, and when I walked inside, found Geno sprawled out on the couch, ready to nap. Yet, even though I'd disrupted his routine, he greeted me like I'd been gone for days. When he sees me after I've been gone, his eyes radiate love. I'm convinced that he sees me as someone who deserves respect, love, admiration, and someone who always takes care of his needs--someone who never does anything wrong, someone who is always there, and someone who gives freely of herself. If only I could be what he sees in me, all of the time. Recently, I realized that I was expending a lot of time and energy into a volunteer position, not because I believed in their mission, but because I believed it could lead to better things for me. I believe in their mission, I honestly do. However, I let my ambitions cloud my reasons for volunteering, and that's wron...

I volunteered to monitor a rescue transport this weekend, after finding out that I didn't need to sit at home to do it. I thought they needed me to sit at home, while really, as long as I could use my phone to send emails, I could be wherever! Mac was thrilled that I didn't need to be at home. It allowed us to go have breakfast, do a few mystery shops, and run a few errands. We did a grocery store mystery shop and a restaurant mystery shop, and stopped by another grocery store to see the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile. Yes, I'm a little kid like that. Oscar Mayer Wienermobile We also picked up the chicken and pork that I need for my first foray into freezer cookbook meals. The grocery store hosting the Wienermobile always has the freshest meats, and typically has the best prices on them as well. So, I picked up 12 pounds of chicken and 3 pork roasts. I'm going to pick up the rest of the items I need today, and will package those tonight. I'm not sure what we're ...

Our February Dream Dinners session was this past Saturday. Our order included 78 servings, as I'd decided that I had to try the Layered Ravioli Bake, even though I had another 36 servings, and Tiff had 36 servings. What I didn't know when I placed the order was that it was good I planned to do that. Our order included: Crispy French Onion Chicken (2 6-servings) Layered Ravioli Bake (1 6-serving, 1 3-serving) Buffalo Ranch Chicken (1 6-serving, 1 3-serving) Cattleman's Pie (1 6-serving, 1 3-serving) Terracotta Chicken with Pita & Hummus (1 6-serving) Cola & Lime Tender Pork Roast (2 6-servings) Arroz Con Pollo (1 6-serving) Tuscan Steaks (1 3-serving) Creamy Chicken Risotto (1 3-serving) Cheese Lover's Manicotti (1 3-serving) Spitfire Beef Roast with Mashed Potatoes (1 6 serving) Mac drove us to Dream Dinners, because he wanted to go to Cabela's, as they were sponsoring an NRA weekend--join or renew your NRA membership for $35, and receive a $...

Dinner on Thursday  night was Dream Dinners Meatloaf Milano with Mashed Potatoes. Mac got home around lunchtime on Thursday, and we were both exhausted. I had my PWG conference call at 4, so as soon as that was over, I vegged for a bit. About 6 PM, I started dinner. We debated going out to eat, but decided that it would be quicker to cook the meatloaf. One of the vacuum-sealed bags of meat leaked, so the directions were soaked, and the juices were on the outside of the other bags. I combined everything and prepared the meatloaf, placing the Gorgonzola in the middle of the meatloaf. I baked it, as directed, and while that was cooking, decided to whip up a batch of cupcakes for dessert. I made snowman cupcakes--vanilla cupcakes, vanilla icing, topped with a marshmallow decorated to look like a snowman face. That is held onto the cupcake by a toothpick. The only problem with making cupcakes was that I can't find my muffin pans, and had returned Tiff's to her on Monday. Oops!...

I'd originally planned on driving a transport on Saturday, from Harrisburg to Hamburg, but it was cancelled on Friday, due to one of the dogs being ill and not filling one leg for the other dog. So, I took Saturday as a day to rest and generally not do much. I'm still not feeling well, so I needed a day with no plans. Mac called me on his way home from the gun show, and a friend was going to stop over after Mac got home, so I got myself cleaned up, only to have Mac come home, covered in puke, because after not eating from Friday night, and only drinking Diet Coke on Saturday, without eating, while on the way home, his stomach decided it was going to file a protest. File a protest it did! He had to stop on the way home, then again when he got home, before he came inside. Once he got inside and told me what happened, I ordered him to shower, leaving his clothes in the bathroom. While he was showering, I threw his clothes in the washing machine. Once he was done, I suggested he ...

I saved the Dream Dinners Slow Cooked BBQ Beef with Baby Bakers for Saturday. I figured that I'd get it ready in the crock pot Friday night, and that Mac could turn it on once he got home from hunting on Saturday morning. I knew that Saturday, after the Dress for Success Professional Women's Group workshop, I wouldn't feel up to cooking, so I thought this was a great way to still have a nice dinner, while not going back out after getting home from the workshop. We had a rifle shipped to Cabela's in Hamburg, and we had until Wednesday, December 5 to pick it up there. We wanted to pick it up by Tuesday, December 4, because of a coupon offer they had, where you could save $20 on a $150 purchase. We planned on heading there on Sunday morning. Saturday morning, Mac and I went hunting, before the workshop. Yes, I went hunting in business attire, with a blaze orange coat and hat added to my outfit. Dedicated, right? I then headed to the workshop, and still managed to arriv...

Friday originally shaped up to be a mildly crazy day, but manageable. I was going to work my normal hours, then cook an early dinner of Dream Dinners Chicken and Pasta with Lemon and Artichoke Sauce, then have a meeting to discuss a presentation for the Dress for Success Professional Women's Group workshop on Saturday, then head home to relax for a bit, assemble thank you gifts for the coordinators, and then get to bed fairly early. I really should know by now that the day before the workshop will never quite work out as planned. It looked like it might be even better, since the meeting was cancelled, as we were able to discuss everything via email. Then, I had to stay at work late, which pushed dinner closer to 6:30 or 7 PM. Once we ate dinner, I selected my outfit for the next day, assembled the baskets, and couldn't fall asleep! Dinner was easy and quick to prepare. I baked the chicken quickly while the pasta and sauce were both cooking, and Mac took care of draining t...

With Mac out hunting until Friday afternoon, I'm not cooking until then. On Friday, I'm going to prepare the Chicken and Pasta with Lemon and Artichoke Sauce. It should be a fairly easy meal to prepare, and since Mac has a contact lens fitting Friday and I have an evening appointment, it should fit in very nicely. On Saturday, I have the Dress for Success Professional Women's Group workshop that I'm facilitating, so I'm planning to prepare the Slow Cooked BBQ Beef with Baby Bakers, since it can be prepared in the crock pot. I'll probably get it ready in the crock pot Friday night, and will leave it in the fridge until Saturday morning. I'll ask Mac to start the crock pot around 9 AM or so, and then it should be ready when I get home from the workshop. That way, I can eat dinner, and then go to bed, since I'll have been awake since 5:00 or so that day, and it typically is very exhausting.

Last Saturday was my Dream Dinners session for November, and I'm a bit late in posting my November menu! It's been an odd week, with Mac in Philadelphia, attending some sort of electrical/automation trade show for work for two days. Amber, one of the ladies who attended the Taste of Dream Dinners event, attended the November session. Afterwards, Tiffany, Amber, and I hit some of the stores on the Best Kept Secrets of Berks County tour. We had lots of fun, and are knocking out additional tour stops on Sunday! In addition to shopping on Sunday, we're also participating in a shopping and spa event in Lancaster! Back to my November menu. It was: Old Fashioned Meatloaf with Twice Baked Potatoes (8 points) Chicken and Pasta with Lemon & Artichoke Sauce (13 points) Slow Cooked BBQ Beef with Baby Bakers (9 points) Creamy Chicken Florentine Tortellini (11 points) Chicken with Honey, Garlic & Orange (5 points) Chicken and White Bean Chili with Corn Frit...

The Taste of Dream Dinners event was fun, and while we had an eclectic mix of people and personalities, I think it all went really well. My guests were a coworker, a friend from Toastmasters, and a friend from the Dress for Success Professional Women's Group. Tiffany's guests were two of her friends. We all arrived before they were ready for us, so we stood outside talking for a while, getting to know each other and joking. When we entered, we were each asked to complete a short questionnaire, and then we were asked to write our names on name tags. We were each asked to give our biggest dinner issue, and for those of us who attended, if Dream Dinners had solved it, and how. Our issues ranged from cooking/eating for one, to not having time or knowing what to prepare, to watching what we're eating. Yes, Dream Dinners can solve much, if not all of that. From there, they did a demonstration of how to prepare a meal, and then turned all of us loose on preparing our mea...

Our Taste of Dream Dinners event is tomorrow. We've had a last minute cancellation, so I've invited a Professional Women's Group member to attend. She is very outgoing, so I'm sure she'll fit in without a problem, and she's generally on top of things, so I don't hesitate to throw her into that situation! I'm very excited about it. I think it will be very enjoyable, and it keeps me busy while Mac is out hunting!

Between work and Cobaka last week, I didn't get a chance to cook as much as I'd hoped. I was in the office this morning for a few hours, and then had errands to run before a Dress for Success Professional Women's Group Community Action Project meeting. I needed to pick up dog food this week or next, and in addition to a $3 coupon, plus a coupon for a free can of cat food, PetSmart was having a friends and family sale, so I could save an extra 15%. I shop at Petco, but they accept PetSmart coupons, so it all worked out well. After the meeting, I stopped at Weis, and picked up my WeisIShop order. That was a disaster, and I'm extremely disappointed. It took 20 minutes, portions of the order were incorrect, omitted, and the produce was substandard. However, I needed to go grocery shopping, and since I wanted to watch the Steelers game, I opted to order everything online, pay $5, and have them actually do the shopping. They're going to get a phone call tomorrow, becau...