Author: Lois Houston

I'm a sweet tea drinkin' southern gal who loves to cook, bake, crochet, and read. Check out my blog for posts about parenting, faith, books, crafts, planning, baking, cooking, and life in general.

Recipe Wednesday (sort of)

I’m still under the weather and feeling pretty rotten. This “bug” is a pretty nasty one and it’s taking it’s toll on me. I feel like a limp noodle with a raw throat. Don’t think it is strep, though (a couple of you have asked) so I’m just taking my vitamins and listening to my body.

Since I feel so lousy, I’m not really thinking about food… or recipes.  So, rather than leave you hanging with nothing new today, I thought I would share a few recipes I’ve bookmarked on Delicious that I want to try someday.

If you have a recipe to share, add to the list by including it in a comment below. Maybe we’ll all get some new ideas to try out someday soon!

So, what have you got to share? Let’s see!

“Gel” Manicure: Day 11

I decided to treat myself to a mani/pedi right before my trip last week. The ladies at the nail salon talked me into getting a “gel” manicure. It’s where they put a gel/polish compound on your nails and “cure” it under a UV light for 2-3 minutes. The manicure is supposed to last for 3 weeks and I figured even if it only lasted for one week, that was longer than the manicures I usually get. I’m a frequent hand-washer and I’m hard on manicures.  So, I thought, why not? Pretty nails for the meetings & travel would be nice.

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So, here is what they look like – 10 days out from the manicure. IMG_0390

I got a lot of compliments on my nails last week & over the weekend. Which was surprising, because that’s not normally something people notice or comment on (for me, anyway)

You can see there is a little growth of my nails, but they still look nice.  IMG_0391

I did have one casualty – this morning – I think it is from all the hand washing I’ve been doing with this dratted cold I have. The corner just peeled up. The nail underneath doesn’t look bad – I was worried that this might damage my nails (they told me it wouldn’t, but I was skeptical) but they seem to have survived okay. IMG_0392So, a week and a half out, I’m still satisfied with the manicure.  Would I do it again? Probably. For a special occasion.  On a regular basis? Probably not. It is just more high-maintenance than my life is geared for right now.

But I’m enjoying the pretty nails while they last. 🙂

Running the Gauntlet

Well, I survived.

barely.

Well, not really. But it felt that way a few times last week.

What a week.

Gracious.

I am soooo glad I don’t travel for a living anymore. I can’t believe I did it for almost 10 years, but that was 10 years ago and I had more stamina then, I guess. I certainly couldn’t do that full-time again. Nor would I want to.

I ended up sick all week with a rotten cold and so on top of the crazy travel, I had sleepless nights (thanks to the stuffy head and wire-you-up decongestants) and lots of snotty tissues (gross, but, hey, it’s reality)

You may have noticed no posts on Thursday/Friday. Those were my marathon travel days – where I really did feel like I was running a gauntlet.  I was in survival mode and had no extra “gumption” for a blog post.

But, I have to say, the week was a smashing success.  Other than one little hiccup on Monday morning, everything went smoothly and I had the most wonderful time with my colleagues. They are a great bunch of people and I truly enjoyed spending time with them while we accomplished the goals we’d set for the week.

Here was my “office” on Monday:

IMG_0384I worked from the hotel room because my meetings for the day were canceled.

These are the sweet ladies I spent my week with:

IMG_0388  We enjoyed an early Cinco de Mayo dinner on Wednesday night…

This week, it’s back to my usual routine. I’m so happy to be home. Only thirteen more days of school for the girls and then things will really slow down.  The girls were talking about it this morning – about how they can’t wait to wake up when they want to as opposed to when the school system wants them to! I think we’ll all enjoy that.

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I’ve got a big shopping trip planned today – restocking the kitchen and back to my normal cooking routine.  Here’s what’s on our menu for this week (so far) – I let SuperMan and the girls dictate the menu to me yesterday so it’s mostly their favorites:

Join us over at orgjunkie.com for some more menu planning ideas.

Photo of the Day: Dinner with the Oracle Gals

Dinner with the Oracle gals: Lata Sundar & Pat Hale sent from my Project 365 app
http://bit.ly/5G0JwQ

May4

Sent from my iPhone

Spring Garden Salad

This recipe comes from an amalgamation of a friend’s recipe for a broccoli salad and a Kraft recipe for a vegetable salad. I kind of mixed it all together to create this concoction, which is really quite good.

I hope you enjoy!

Spring Garden Salad

1-2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped (about 4-5 cups)
1 cup broccoli crowns, chopped
1/2 cup matchstick cut carrots (or shredded carrots)
1/2 cup ranch dressing
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup raisins or craisins (we like the craisins best)
3-4 slices cooked, crumbled bacon

Toss it all together. Chill & enjoy.

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