Is it Okay to Take a Day Off from Blogging?

Can Bloggers take a day off?

As a writer, I generally keep to a fairly strict schedule.  I try to write for at least an hour each day.  So, where was I yesterday?


I was at home.  I was resting.  I was recooperating.

My children shared their cold with me and I was hit HARD.  My attempts to push through and keep going were met with an exasperated remonstration from my Husband.  He reminded me that making myself sicker would not help anyone.  So, I took a day off and propped my feet up.

I played video games with my older son.  I taught my younger son the name of all his new dinosaur toys.  I helped my older son learn a shorter way to do his addition problems while the younger snoozed against my side.   I folded laundry.  I watched my daughter's choir concert in Texas via YouTube.

Mostly, I took time to think about things.  What did I really want out of this next year?  Where do I see my blog, my business, my writing going?

My inspiration word for the year is CAN.

I often find mysef saying, "I can't."  I don't mean that I cannot.  I mean that I don't want to.  I mean that I am too lazy to do so.  I mean that I don't want to face the problems of things.
This year, I can.

And, if I have to take a day off from blogging to get there, then yes.  I can.

How I Got the Picky Eater to Eat New Year's Dinner

Happy New Year!




New Year's is always a time for new goals, new plans, and new hopes. I was lucky enough to get kissed by three absolutely wonderful guys last night when the clock struck twelve.  (Granted, two of the three were in their footie jammies- but they still count towards lucky kisses!)

After sleeping in (I'm running slower today thanks to a shared cold), I had the daunting task of prepping our traditional New Year's Day lunch.  Most of the country eats the same New Year's meal: Black-Eyed Peas and Cabbage.  The peas symbolize luck and the cabbage represents prosperity.  If there's anything we could use in this house, it's lots of luck and prosperity! 

The problem comes when I try to get my husband to eat peas.  He despises beans in general.  He grudgingly ate ONE pea last year.  The kids dislike cabbage and beans on general principle.  Oh, dear!  I spent a few minutes mentally shuffling through my list of meal ideas trying to find one that everyone might compromise on.  Then I remembered- last year, Hubs had the boys try a Mexican Egg Roll at some restaurant or another.  The ingredients included black beans and spinach.  They liked the flavor of it, but weren't fans of the "egg roll" part of it.  With my kids, if you can get them to even consider the idea, then the battle is almost won.  I happen to know that both my kids and Hubs like homemade taquitos.  I wondered to myself, "What would happen if I made something similar as a taquito... but substituted the cabbage for the spinach and the field peas for the black beans?"  Of course, deep frying it is out of the picture, but since I normally bake my taquitos, it shouldn't be too much of a work around.

The result:

New Year's Day Taquitos!

Crispy flour tortillas wrapped around a spicy black-eyed pea, cabbage and pork filling.  The recipe is posted below.  Any ground meat can be substituted for the pork.  I merely used what I had.  Also, I'd typically use fresh peas and corn tortillas, but again, use what you have- I happened to have flour tortillas and a 14 ounce can of black-eyed peas, and they worked beautifully.

New Year's Taquitos
A tasty blend of black-eyed peas, cabbage, and pork. 

1 pound of ground pork (feel free to substitute beef or turkey)
1/2 cup of onions, minced
1 serrano pepper, minced finely (substitute a bell pepper if you don't like spicy peppers)
1 can of black-eyed peas, rinsed then chopped roughly
1 cup of finely shredded cabbage
1 1/2 cup of colby-jack or cheddar cheese, shredded
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
Tortillas (approximately 20 taco sized tortillas)

Brown the meat in a large pan over medium high heat.  Once the meat is browned, add in the onions, peppers, and cabbage.  Cook until the vegetables soften, but not burnt.  Add peas and stir until warmed.  Remove from heat.  Stir in spices and cheese.  Allow to sit for five minutes.  While waiting, pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F and layer parchment paper or foil on a baking sheet.  Begin filling the taquitos by placing a heaped spoonful of filling onto the lower third of a tortilla.  Roll upwards into a tube.  Place seam side down on baking sheet.  Once all the tortillas are filled, bake the taquitos for 25 to 30 minutes or until barely browned and crispy.

So, how did they turn out? 

The couldn't even put them down to finish watching their movie!

My preschooler, once the pan had cooled, began sneaking into the kitchen to grab leftover ones from the pan.  So much for having a few left to freeze for later! 

I hope your New Year is a fantastic opportunity for each of my readers.  Good luck!

It's the End of the World (as We Know It)

December 31, 2012.  I thought this year might never come to an end.  This was the year of upheaval.  The year when the ground ripped apart, and oceans rushed in to fill the gaps.  Meteors rained down from outer space and alien cows invaded Finland.

“Apocalypse Tomorrow Pin-Up Calendar 2012” designed by the Russian illustrator Andrew Tarusov

Okay, so that didn't really happen.  It certainly feels like it happened, though.

We moved this year.  We didn't JUST move.  We moved in stages- LOOOONG stages.  From Ohio to South Carolina is a long move for a family with two special needs children and a grumpy cat.  We went in stages, as I'd said: House to RV, RV to hotel, hotel to another hotel, and finally we found a small apartment to keep us until we can find a house.  The entire process took a little over six months and, to some extent, is still ongoing.

This RV may or may not have been the best (or worst) purchase of our lives.  Have you ever tried to cram three kids, two cats, a grouchy night-shift husband, and a die-hard cooking addict into a space only 26 feet long?

Tonight, while everyone else is getting their midnight kiss, I will be celebrating a different manner entirely.  I am looking forward to just getting my life- my crazy, exhausting, busy, messy, and sometimes funny life- back.  As for the kiss, there might be one.  Maybe.  If I don't fall asleep first.