Showing posts with label cuban. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cuban. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Random New Things

Because I am generally a sucker for trying new things (not because of an unfulfilled pumpkin spice obsession) I picked up this box of Pumpkin Spice Cheerios. I have had them for about two weeks and have yet to try a bowl. I sampled a couple dry Cheerios and thought they must be better with milk, but they still sit atop the fridge. The other night my poor husband thought they were Honey Nut Cheerios...disappointment. I am a bit turned off by the strong clove smell. I need to try them or move on, I will let you know.
Now these are what I really wish I had in the house. I have resisted them several times in the store. Crunch Berries are kinda my thing and I need to leave them at the store :(
I noticed these in the store awhile back, but have been turned off by the price - almost $4 for three packets. The other day I threw budget to the wind and picked them up.
It was a nice mix....it is hard not to like cheddar, cashews and raisins. I am not sure if they are the most satisfying snack because I actually ate them as part of my lunch. I have two more packets to experiment with.
I found these at Aldi the other day. I forgot until after I bought them that I am not a big fan of freeze dried strawberries in cereal (like Special K). They weren't bad though on their own. However, I much prefer the peach. The whole bag is one serving (130-150 calories), but it only weighs 1.2 oz so it isn't filling anyone up. I will say one or two pieces of the peach is pretty satisfying. They were $3 a bag so it is a good thing I can make them last.
We ate at a little Cuban place last week. I have had their sandwiches and street tacos before. Last time we were there, I heard another customer raving about the salmon and the Cuban beans...so of course, I had to try it. It was very tasty. Even my non-fish eater husband kept stealing bites from my plate.
The farmer's market is starting to close down, but not before putting all the squash and gourds on display :)
There was also an adjoining craft/yard sale at the market last Saturday. I am a bit in love with the birds.
I had to laugh when I saw this guy. Engelbert Humperdinck is my husband's go-to alias. It is an unforgettable name. I tried to take a selfie with him, but I failed. Maybe I should try listening to some of his music.
And because this post is a bit random already, I am including my favorite thing that has come home from pre-school. We have been hearing plenty about fire safety this week :)
 Finally - T-bone - need I say more?
Have you tried anything new lately you can recommend (or warn against)?

Monday, April 18, 2016

Half a Weekend

That was a crazy busy weekend, but yet oddly relaxing.

Friday night we started our weekend by attending a lecture by Jim Lovell, Apollo 13 Commander. We were able to score free tickets to the sold out event :) 

Lovell started the presentation with a little anecdote about meeting Tom Hanks who played him in the movie Apollo 13. Hanks had come to Austin to get background on the story and Lovell invited him to his home near Austin to talk more and watch videos from the mission.  The following is a clip of Lovell talking about flying Hanks to his home. (I didn't try to get video because we were too far back).

The flight was almost 50 years ago and Lovell is now 88 years old. He did a great job walking us through the flight from liftoff to return.He didn't talk much about the emotional side of it - maybe that has been dulled by the passing of time and all the lectures he has given. In this clip he talks about the watching the oxygen escape.

I never thought about this, but he mentioned that greater than the fear of dying on return to earth was the thought of being caught in an endless orbit as a permanent space monument. What a strange thing to contemplate.

He wrapped up the talk with a final piece of advice - keep a positive attitude. We all are going to have rough times and a positive attitude is essential to getting through it. You just have to put your head down and get through it. Incidentally, I could have used his pep talk this morning when I got on the scale - it was not what I had hoped for, but mostly what I deserved.  


I have been on the campus many times, but had never seen the dome at night. It was a fun surprise when we came out to our car after the lecture.
Saturday morning I met up with a friend to go to a Vintage Market. There were so many people and things to look at - complete sensory overload.  I am a sucker for glasses and if there had been an open spot in my cabinet these would have come home with me.
I was intrigued by this little glass canoe, but not sure if it has a particular use. Any ideas?

This lampshade isn't exactly my style but it did remind me it would be pretty easy to update a lampshade with a beautiful fabric.
I have a bunch of Scrabble tiles. Seeing these sell for 6 dollars makes me wonder about the fortune I am sitting on.
There was no part of me that was tempted to buy creepy aresol can baby. I wonder if anyone did.
I do enjoy personification of inanimate objects, but not so sure if this would fit in my life.
I could picture Zommie in this little doggie bed under a coffee table.
This a pretty fancy dog crate...Millie?
Arrows seemed to be a trend. We saw them in all sizes, materials and colors. I think these were my favorite.
The base of this table was a little more rustic than I like, but I loved the top.
I am also a sucker for license plate art, even though I don't have any yet. If I had a source of old license plates I would love to make something like this.
Or this one. I think it would be cool on a patio.
A cool light for a family room?
I found these goodies. I have actually had their bread and butter jalapenos before - so good. This vendor had samples of all their products - I tasted way too many.The strawberry/pepper jelly was so good on cream cheese with crackers.



When I got home my husband and I ran (and by ran I mean drove) to our new favorite Cuban Cafe for lunch. The owner was chatting with us while we were deciding what to order. He recommended these tacos and they did NOT disappoint. The pork is placed on a creamy spicy spread, topped with a bit of queso and a citrus veggie slaw. We both agreed we must have them again.
We also ordered the traditional Cuban sandwich - super flavorful.
After lunch my husband was working on a project for work, so I decided to take Millie and Zommie to the farm to play. We were enthusiastically greeted by Buddy.
His enthusiasm made it a little difficult to get out of the car. He was bouncing up and down as though he were on springs.
Millie and Buddy had a great time in the creek.
I am always amazed at their cooperation on retrieving sticks - although it does look like Millie is trying to push him out.
All we need to do is attach a cart to that stick and put those dogs to work.
A happy tired pup.
Two friends heading back up the trail to the house.
Of course, there was begging for ice cream on the porch

It was a fun afternoon - perfect spring weather. 
So that is Friday and Saturday...Sunday was a whole other day that I will share tomorrow. But for now it is Monday and time to get back to work. What's on your agenda this week?






Friday, April 8, 2016

Catch Up - 3rd and Final

I think this post will bring us up to date....no more missing blogging for a week or so for me :)

Dreaming of good things growing in the garden. My mom picked up a few seeds when she was in California. I've grown yellow beans before and the purple are fun, but they do turn green when cooked. I will have to come up with a pretty raw bean dish to showcase the rainbow effect. 
I have been frustrated by off and on weather, but I finally planted a few cold weather veggies - radishes, spinach, swiss chard, lettuce. The reminds me they have sprouted (sorry no pic this time) and I need to cover them tonight cause we are supposed to have a hard freeze :(
 My sister-in-law sent some herb cuttings from California. I got them to root in water.
Then I planted them in a pot.  Plan is to sink the pot into the herb bed. I think these might be super spreader herbs and I don't want them to take over, so the pot should stop the roots.
And then I killed them :(  I am still babying them hoping they are only "mostly dead".
My husband and I tried out a new restaurant. It is a tiny little Cuban cafe. I got the marinated steak sandwich. My husband actually got an Italian inspired sandwich. We ended up splitting each sandwich to share - I love that. The "fritas" are shredded potato fried and topped with a little garlic vinaigrette.
While we were waiting for our food they handed out samples of their sweet Cuban coffee. Neither of us our coffee drinkers but we tried it anyway - free sample, right?  Turns out we both liked it. Not enough to become coffee drinkers, but we were pleasantly surprised.
We finished off the meal by sharing the creamiest slice of flan. We will definitely go back. We already decided on our next two sandwiches. I won't be surprised if my husband suggests we go this weekend.
I bought a couple herbs that are waiting to go into the garden. While they sit on the counter they are fair game.
 I stole some springs for a chicken marinade.
 One of my favorite ways to marinade is to toss everything into a Ziploc bag.
 A couple times during the marinade time I mush around everything in the bag without having to open the bag or get my hands dirty.
I have been spending quite a bit of time in the former craft room. I have several sewing projects I am trying to finish up. I, also, found these toys that my oldest niece used to play with eons ago when I lived in a tiny apartment.
The sewing has been productive. I finally finished this quilt top that I have beeen "working on" for about 5 years. It is huge - 107 by 109 inches! Now I just have to figure out the backing.
I finally finished these pillows that I started making about a year and a half ago. The bird fabric matches her curtains.  All three pillows are backed with the black fabric. The hold up on these was braving putting in zippers. My zipper foot broke and it took forever for me to replace it. Then I was just scared to mess them up and didn't try. The zippers aren't the prettiest, but they work and the pillows are now in use. My niece reports they are very comfortable :)
I have sewn up several baby blankets. I have two more half done and a box of fabric to go.  I have a problem with flannel. When there is a sale I just can't help myself.
I noticed Desiree at Finding the Skinny Geek Within uses these containers for her food prep. I ordered a package of 10 here. They are my latest toy and I have fun packing them up with yummy lunches.
 Little things like packing a lunch inspires me to take my shoes to walk at work too :)
My husband has been working long days, so I have packed him lunches too...he is on a bit of a PB&J kick.  The other day he sent me this Snapchat - made me smile.
The dogs continue to be lazy slugs....




And of course there is plenty of goofiness going on...thank you Snapchat :)

From when we were removing the tree stump.
Too many crazy features. My husband and niece seem to compete for the craziest. My husband working out at his computer. For the record, that is a face morphing feature - he is not that oddly shaped :)
 My niece is constantly snapping pictures of us, morphing and decorating them and sending them back to us.
 Last Sunday, my husband took our niece and nephew to the movies. I got to stay home and sew :)
 No one is safe from the Snapchatters.
Thank you for indulging my massive catch up.

What is on your weekend agenda?