Memorial Day and Delicious Non-Traditional BBQ

This Memorial Day was pretty low-key, and that's the way I like things most of the time.  It was just me, my Handsome Hubby and our Nephew who is staying with us for a bit until he finds an apartment while going to school.  Our house is kind of like a boarding house sometimes.  It seems like more often than not, we have a guest.  I really enjoy this aspect of our home.  Anyways, back to our BBQ.  I picked up some wild-caught Alaskan halibut (my favorite fish) for an excellent price at Safeway and was dying to incorporate it into our BBQ.  Biggest obstacle: my Handsome Hubby hates halibut...

Peppered Beef Shank in Red Wine : Slow Cooker-Style

Having bought a quarter of a cow from a local ranch, I've had to cook parts of a cow that I've never cooked before.  This has really been a lot of fun and it's brought some really interesting recipes to my table.  This week, I defrosted beef shanks and looked to the web to provide me a recipe for this new (to me) cut of beef. 

Adventures in Paint: Cheap and Simple Home Decorating Part 2

Welcome to the second installment of my two-part series showing how I decorated my house on the cheap with paint.  If you missed Part 1 of this series, check it out HERE.  So many people I know, are afraid of paint.  I even used to be one of them.  But then it finally dawned on me: if I don't like the paint, I can always paint over it.  This was such a freeing revalation.  Here is how I decorated my first son's room.

Sweet Potato Crackers

One of my fabulous neighbors brought me these crunchy nibbles and boy, they are delicious!  She had made them as a snack for her toddler, but found that she was eating most of them.  I'm so glad she shared them with me.  Not only was my 14 month old Baby Boy begging for these crackers, but I found myself crunching on them as well. 

Adventures in Paint: Cheap and Simple Home Decorating Ideas Part 1 of 2

I don't like bare walls.  So when we moved into a large home, I had lots of walls to cover.  Unfortunately, our mortgage was equally as large as the home, so I had to do it on the cheap.  Thank goodness for the cheapness of paint.  This is Part One of a two-part series featuring super easy decorating with paint. 

Grandma Carol's Oatmeal Cookies

These amazing oatmeal cookies have been a consistent theme in my life.  They have ruined me for all oatmeal cookies.  Perhaps it's the "secret ingredient" that makes them so amazing.  Perhaps it's the chewiness of the oats.  Whatever it is, you won't be able to stop after eating 1... 2... 3... 4... 

My Mother’s Day Gift

I have to admit, this post was going to talk about the American marketing machine and how terrible it is that they try to convince us that only flowers and jewelry are appropriate Mother’s Day gifts.  But then I realized that those are perfect gifts for some moms.  Just because they’re not my favorite gifts doesn’t mean that they aren’t the favorite gifts of others.  So what’s this post about?  My Mother’s Day Gift.

Vacation Plans Are Set!!

 I am excited to finally have our summer vacation plans set.  We will be spending a week in Oregon to visit my family and a week in Missouri to visit my husband's family.  I have to say that I am a bit biased and am looking forward to our Oregon leg of the trip the most.  This  is not to say that I enjoy one family over the other, but to say that I feel most at home in Oregon.  It's only natural, since that's where I was born and raised.  Missouri is a bit foreign to me.  I'm not used to the humidity and the bugs.  But you bet I'm going to be prepared this time. 

Brown Rice Spaghetti with Homemade Marinara (in 15 minutes!)

I love this sauce recipe!  I found it while doing a little detox (wheat, sugar, and dairy-free) as a beginning to the Harcombe Diet (I'll post about it later).  I've since discovered the awesome-ness that is brown rice pasta.  It cooks and tastes just like that delicious, but oh so bad for you, white pasta.  The plus is that it's a whole grain pasta and is much lighter than whole wheat pasta.  But the best thing about this recipe is the sauce.  I was amazed at how easy and tasty this sauce was in just 15 minutes; ok, 20 if you include prep time.