it's a chocolatey kind of day.

it's easter.
a day for celebrating.

today i'm celebrating because i get to eat chocolate again after living chocolate free for over two months. haha, two months.  it may not sound like much, but it really is. i would give almost anything for a taste of the sweet, rich, yummy flavor. i'm hoping to get kisses, reese's eggs, and snickers in my basket this year.   i was eating chocolate in excess and needed some control, so since about january i've been trying to be good.

i do this little willpower thing a few times a year and i really am proud of myself for it.  so today i finally get to eat some.

but,
it's also going to be a pretty day spent with family, sunshine, hopefully warmer temps, and probably a prayer or two.

there's much to be thankful for and much to be prayed for, as well.

i hope you find some things to be thankful for on this easter day.

source

loaded baked potato soup

you know what pairs well with a foot of snow?  a nice, warm bowl of soup.

the other day when we got tons of snow and were cooped up inside, i found this recipe in a magazine and whipped up this yummy, filling soup.

if you like rich, creamy potato soup, try making this sometime soon.  it will definitely hit the spot.

• ingredients -

2 1/2 lbs potatoes
1/2 lb sliced bacon
2 tbsp butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp flour
4 cups 2% milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cups shredded white cheddar cheese
scallions, thinly sliced
sour cream

• directions -

pierce potatoes and bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes.  allow to cool slightly and scoop potato into a bowl and mash.

meanwhile, cook bacon until crisp.  crumble and set aside.  reserve 2 tbsp of bacon fat.

in a large pot, add butter and reserved bacon fat and heat over medium heat.  add onion and cook 3 minutes; sprinkle flour over onion and cook 1 minute.  gradually whisk in milk, stir in salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne.  add reserved mashed potatoes and bring to a simmer.  reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  stir in 2 cups of the cheese, half of the bacon, and half of the scallions.

top with sour cream, remaining bacon, and scallions.

* unfortunately i didn't have any scallions and i think i left out a pretty flavorful ingredient. be sure to have some on hand!

cute, little punxsutawney phil, LIED!

oh yes, he sure did.

what happened to an early spring?  here in these parts, it is supposed to be upwards in the 50s and 60s.  unfortunately it's been in the 30s since i can't remember when, and it's getting old.  to make matters worse, it snowed all day yesterday and we got about a foot of snow.  i don't think i've ever seen this much snow in my life!

i love snow, but i don't even feel like getting out and playing in it much. i am just ready for spring and warmer weather!  i see so many pictures of people in spring clothes, being outside, and having a tan and i have cabin fever.

nonetheless, it sure does make for a pretty scene and here are a few photos i snapped.

 what's the weather like where you live??

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have a fun weekend.

my third sleeping mate.

a while back i wrote a post and mentioned how i sleep with a rice filled cow.  i had several emails asking if i could please explain and possibly even show a picture of this odd creature.  besides the mr. and dutch, i share the bed with yet another guy thing. 

over the weekend while i was away having not-so-fun-drunk-sleep, i realized that i really missed this weirdo.  i guess you could say i have to sleep with a stuffed animal every nite, ha! 

it all started when my mom bought me one of these cute animals for sore muscles.  you know the drill, you have something similar to where you warm up in the microwave, place on your body, and your aches melt away.  so it started that way, but has turned into a nightly ritual.  honestly, every.single. nite.

he sleeps with me whether it's on my belly, back, or shoulder and it's like i have to have him every nite.  sure he helps out with the aches & pains, but i believe he's turned into a comfort thing as well.  as funny and childish as this sounds, it's so real.  i love my little sleeping buddy.  he even has a name now. 

it's actually almost time to get a new one since he has almost run his course, but the place my mom gets them is currently out, so i'll hold on to him for as long as he lasts or doesn't catch on fire.

seriously, if you suffer from aches and pains, get one of these little guys.  he works wonders on cramps as well.  i love having one of these little buddies for my sore muscles or other ailment.  the first one i had was a cute puppy and this little critter is a cow.  curious as to what my next one will be.

do you have any little odd quirks or buddies like mine?

some things i'm looking forward to

1.  going out for st. patty's day.  have a few green beers, irish car bombs, wear green and have some fun. it only happens once a year so why not celebrate!

2.  i started a new medicine for my anxiety so i'm curious to see how well it works.  keeping my fingers crossed because the last med i was on seemed to wear off after a few years.

3.  spring.  when will it ever be here?  i'm so tired of the 40 degree, windy, sunless days.

4.  booking a trip to vegas for my sister's graduation celebration.  hopefully sometime in may or early june!

5. being part of a new book club.  my friend introduced me to a group that she belongs to and i'll be going to the first meeting next month.  we are going to read the paris wife. 

6.  spending our tax money.  we didn't get back nearly what we did last year, but it will be nice to apply what little we did to our ever increasing credit card balance.

7.  showering and using my mask.  as routine as it sounds, i'm ready to get this day started and feel refreshed.

have a great weekend!

into the swing of more light!

i have a love/hate relationship with this day.

i dislike it, not only because we lose an hour of sleep or partying, or whatever we may be doing at 2a, but i feel groggy for the day.  my day starts out feeling a bit wasted because it's already an hour later.

but, i love it for the fact that spring is near, it won't be getting dark until about 7ish, and it puts me in a better mood!  here we come longer days, warm weather, and pretty colors.

have a great day!

different is beautiful

if i haven't always felt the most confident or positive about myself, one thing i have always liked is that i'm different.

i would consider myself to be a free-spirited person, a non-conformist, if you will.

sure, i will have some trendy, cute clothes, but you will never see me in an outfit of skinnies, booties, with a peplum shirt and a scarf.  often i wear solid colors and prefer tanks, jeans, and birkenstocks; homemade jewelry, braids, and patchouli.  don't get me wrong, i love to shop for clothes and new finds, but i've always been the type to use these pieces in my own style.

i can definitely be a girly-girl because of my love for hair & makeup, but i'm far from it on the inside.  i'd rather go thrifting than shop in a coach store, and i'd rather spend hours in a bookstore than browsing the racks of neiman marcus.  while a stroll down rodeo drive is fun, often times i feel uncomfortable in such high-end places and also rarely find anything i actually like there. 

growing up i always had more guy friends than girl friends; still do actually.  for some reason i get along a lot better with the opposite gender.  my sisters are my best girl friends and while i have a lot of other close ones, i can't say i have a 'best friend' outside of my sisters.  i know other girls are like this and i often wonder why this is. i could honestly associate with only family & a few friends for the rest of my life and totally be happy with that.

naturally, my way of thinking has really changed as i've grown older and sometimes i find myself becoming more lenient, straying from the norms of society and life.  i don't really want to live under anyone else's control or rules or told how i need to live my life in ways of living, spending, thinking, and believing.  of course there have to be some rules in which we live by, but for the most part, why can't we be free to do what we choose.

my life is lived by chasing dreams and living my own life.  i've been told my whole life that there's something different about me in many ways - the way i look, the way i talk, the clothes i wear, the way my hair or makeup is done, the way my words come out wrong half of the time, the ideas i have, and so on.  i love it.

what makes you unique?

twas a good week, i suppose.

it was really quite a good week for several reasons. of course i'm always the first to find the negative in everything, but this week i decided to find nice things.

first.  most importantly to me is that my love finally found a job. we can hopefully go back to our regularly scheduled routine of life & work, plus i hope it helps to ease this little mind of mine.

second.  i finally filmed a tutorial on how i do a simple second day hair. only problem is my stupid windows movie maker won't recognize it, so i can't even upload it.  tips & thoughts would be highly loved!  here's a sneak peek.

third. i finally found blood oranges at the store!  the only other time i had one was last year in florida and it was fresh off the tree.  i'm thinking the color only makes it taste that much better, but check out that amazing color.

fourth.  wednesday i went to see my family back home {which is only 45 mins} hi again, dad!
it was fun - i took the boys, ate lunch, hung out, and drove home in winter weather.  always a good time.

finally.  i have a tentative date for my arbonne launch party!  i am so excited because i have been wanting to become a consultant for such a long time and i love the philosophy behind the company.  what more could an animal lover who likes natural, health products want in an at home business.  oh yeah, their white mercedes!

source.  

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