we’re in remodeling mode around in my kitchen! This means we’ll be eating outdoors for the next few weeks…months?!?! God I hope it doesn’t take that long!!!

So you might see some make-shift dinners like this one from tonight…for the next few weeks…..

I got some cute avocados in my organic veggie/fruit shipment this week:

Casey jazzed one up with sea salt, freshed cracked pepper & olive oil…

Here’s me devouring one of my favorite food combos EVER!
(tomato, basil, garlic rubbed crostini & olive oil- salt & pepper too!)

I’d also like to thank my hubby for painting the door to the *man room* this weekend.
Here it is with the first coat. Doesn’t it look smashing?

Also this weekend:

-had buckwheat pancakes with lots of butter, syrup & strawberries
-went to the city to pick up Red Sox tickets
-had a yummy lunch @ Naan & Curry
-beat the heat and saw Forgetting Sarah Marshall (super funny)
-met up with a friend in the city
-worked around the house on the remodel
-tried to stay cool…temperature was up to 99 at one point!

It’s Tuesday…and all I can think of is the past weekend and the weekend coming up. We live for weekends don’t we? Weekends seem like the only time I am able to play in the kitchen and take photos at my own pace…and this weekend I did just that.

Started off with breakfast outside on the patio….

Here I am busy working in the kitchen while Casey snoozed:

End result = eggs with chives & cheddar, toast with strawberry puree and coffee!

Our plates were licked clean…

I did some gardening…

I bought a new doormat for the patio…

A new fern for each bathroom (i love them!)

We fixed up our other deck and ate the Orange Strawberry popsicles I made on Friday to celebrate!

I stuck three cucumbers in the juicer and out came this lovely shade of green…

The cucumber pulp inspired me to make tzatziki…and then I ended up with this:

I made turkey meatballs without following a recipe…

And of course I had to use that cucumber juice so I made a delightful ginger-ale/cucumber/mint/lemon concoction…

cheers!

Also:

-watched a few movies (La Vie En Rose, Into the Wild & Alpha Dog)

-Casey continued to work on painting our kitchen cabinets

-I started a sewing project that ended terribly :(

-Took a trip to Home Depot

-Daydreamed about my perfect kitchen…..

What are you doing this weekend?

It was so hot in our bedroom on Saturday morning, that we took off our thick/winter duvet cover and bought this new one.  We must prepare for the warmer days ahead!

I really love it.

Our neighbors dropped off some beautiful lilacs from their garden….

I fed my green grape addiction…

I did a MASSIVE amount of gardening around the house.  I’m pretty sure I will be sore tomorrow….

I put some hot links on the grill and we had ourselves a mini BBQ dinner as the sun was going down….

(*It was to honor the Red Sox game*-Casey says)

Casey helped me chop the onions…

Did I ever tell you how much I LOOOOOVE mustard??

There was nothing left in the end…

I also made chocolate chocolate chip cookies…but had a disaster!  I’ll share the recipe when I MAKE IT WORK.

It was a nice mellow weekend.  I hope you enjoyed yours too!

Off to watch more of Carnivale!

next year for the holidays, make it easy and plan a vacation soon after.

Someone remind me that next December- OK?

I had a case of the sniffles & a mild sore throat during Christmas time.  I did a REALLY good job of ignoring it.  I wouldn’t allow myself to be sick because I had so much to do.  So it wasn’t until the hangover of New Year’s day that my cold took the better of me.

I worked from home on Friday, which was wonderful because I could watch the storm outside and snuggle in my jammies while I crunched numbers. I also blasted the soundtrack to Juno which made it a better day.   That night, we drove into the city and spent the evening with my parents eating at Jardiniere in SF.  The meal was fantastic.  So many wonderful flavors…great cheese and wine.  Happy Birthday Mom!

So I woke up Saturday hungover…and sicker.  I should have known better.  You should never drink when you aren’t feeling well to begin with.

Someone else please remind of that too.  Thanks.

So Saturday I slept…watched tv…stayed home most of the day.  But then I was starting to feel like a shut-in—So I invited my neighbor over for a quickie/impromptu late afternoon lunch:

Today (feeling much better, thank you) we went to coffee.  It’s been weeks since we were able to do so.  It was really nice to get outside despite the rain.

I went to the Container Store (favorite place to shop– second to Target) and bought some shelf stackers for my cabinets.

Here’s the before:

Here’s the After:

It all started because I decided to write down some realistic 2008 goals/resolutions today.  Number 3 was to become more organized and get rid of clutter.   Casey wrote on my list “Overcome the urge to make piles”  So—I guess I’m gonna have to learn how to do that.

My mom says I need to learn how to relax—So I’m gonna figure out how that works this year too.

It feels so good to have this cabinet organized.  It was impossible to put things away in such a waste- of- space cabinet.  These are all my fancy dishes & my little collection of special plates for photos, entertaining & such.

I also organized my computer room.  It was sooo full of glitter, wrapping paper scraps and loose ends.  Only took me 4 hours to complete.   Must not let it get that bad again/ever.

Tonight’s dinner was from a recipe in this month’s Everyday Food (Cayenne Rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa). It was very light (like they say) and fresh tasting with a perfect spiciness.  I will definitely add it to the rotation.  It’s EXTREMELY simple (which is good).  It seems so ridiculous following the recipe word for word. So I’ll prolly just remember how it tasted and go from there the next time I make it.  I grilled the chicken instead of cooking it in a pan.

The avocado relish does a nice job of balancing the cayenne.  It’s excellent with tortilla chips too.

Anyways…it’s late.  I’m sleepy. It’s time for rest.  Hope you all had a nice weekend.

Wishing you a very Happy Birthday- Melisser! xoxoox

Break out the chocolate fountain next time I come over OK?

the past week in photo form:

lunch with the family at greens:

dinner with my family at zuni:

finishing decorative touches around the house…..

over-extending myself in the kitchen…..

last minute wrapping…

-Christmas Eve dinner at my parents (too busy to take pics! sooo sad!)

-Christmas Day with the hubbie’s family

-Day after Christmas–family portraits taken at the beach…..

- dinner at my house with husband’s family (made two soups)

-made it to 100 posts on this blog!!!   (thank you for all your kind words & support!  It’s been fun!)

and……a lot of other stuff happened too…but we finally have some down time….and I have three new magazines to devour.

more soon….

-mail the rest of the xmas cards (yes,done)-sleep in! (Saturday-not really/Sunday-yes!)

-make a dessert? (made blueberry muffins from a Donna Hay cookbook)

-post a recipe (hold your horses- i’ll do that in a sec)

-figure out which cookies to make for xmas (umm good ones? gingerbread ones?)

-take some photos (well yes of course, but here are a few more)

-finish laundry (3 loads down, two more to go)

-wrap xmas presents (almost done)

-squeeze cats (yes- but maybe more before bed)

-buy xmas presents for the dudes in the family (one dude down, three dudes to go)

-have a cocktail (i’ll get on that now)

-go to grandmas house for lunch/dinner on Saturday (yes and here’s proof)

-watch the season finale of Dexter (done! wow! I will miss you, dex!)

- go to Target (yup! what a zoo! frightening!)

-watch some Flight of the Conchords (watched 3 episodes)

-straighten up craft room (doing so now)

-work out (yes! feeling the burn, baby!)

Not on the list:

-went to Borders

-made a yummy Potato Leek Soup with croutons (recipe soon)

Now, it’s time to finish straightening up my craft room, wrap some presents with a cocktail, post a recipe, take care of laundry and unwind….. Happy Sunday everyone.