Crochet Love

It's been such a long time since I've been here.   I've laid off the crafting and gotten pretty obsessed with crochet.  I've started a blanket here or there, but I could never stay with it.

Then an amazing stiched came up on my newsfeed in facebook!!

I thought it was such a gorgeous stitch I had to try it.  Thus began my first real project, a lapghan for my downstairs neighbors.  It was such a fast stitch and the results were so pretty I really wanted to keep going.  The project was done just in time for Christmas and it came out fantastic, my neighbors couldn't be happier.

Since I hadn't used a pattern to make my blanket and was winging it I way over purchased the yarn.  I used 3 skeins and had bought 6.  I loved the colors in the yarn so I decided to make something for myself out of it.  A matching hat and scarf.  In retrospect I wish I hadn't done a tassel ball on the hat and instead done a mass of curli-Qs but that's OK.  I can make another for next winter (yes, still a whole skein of that yarn left).  Still no pattern used, I was winging it so there are some errors but it's cool, these are all mine and they match my new winter coat perfectly.

I enjoy the crocheting so much but just making blankets and scarves seemed silly and wasteful, I wanted to make something really useful.  Now I'm experimenting with cotton yarns and trying some potholders to replace my very old and very ratty ones.  Still not real pattern or anything.  Just winging it since they are pretty basic.  

Two new potholders, done!  I used Lily Sugar N Cream Beach Ball Blues (with the pink) and Moondance (with the blues).  

These are pretty basic, just single crochet straight across,  Nothing fancy but quite functional!

On to start the next project!!

Suitcase Cat Bed

More crafting!

When my dad came to this country in 1956 he carried a hard sided brown Samsonite suitcase.  It's been sitting in Mom's attic for years.  I've always wanted to do... something... with it.  My plan was a cat bed and I had some vague ideas on how to do it, but it never amounted to much.  The suitcase moved from Mom's attic to my spare closet for 2 years.

Until recently!

This is what the suitcase looked like before I started. (This isn't the exact suitcase, but one that looks just like it)


First step was to rip out all the old stained lining.   All the smells on it kept the cats busy for hours and bought me time to work undisturbed for a while.

I cleaned it off really well with Murphy's soap.  Then I used a gold Sharpie pen to color the hardware.

Next, I bought myself a cordless drill (Rawr!) and drilled holes in the one side (the more scuffed side so it would face down) for 4 legs.

Now I wanted to see if a regular bed pillow fit in it or if I had to make a specially sized 'bed' for it.  Woohoo, the pillow fit!  Less work for me!

At this point MowMow had to investigate and made himself at home on the pillow...for the rest of the afternoon.


While MowMow was test driving my project with a marathon nap I was off to Joann's for some fabric to reline it.  I wanted cheap and I found the perfect one in the discount bin for 3.00 (as least I thought it was perfect).

I wanted ribbon or piping around the outside so I didn't have to tuck in all that fabric.  I dug around Joann's but it was all pricey and then I remembered that I have YARDS of lace in my crafting room.

15">
(I didn't finish until late at night, sorry for the dark dreary pic)

Legs were stained, lining put in, piping(lace) added and the only thing it was missing was.... a cat.

Luckly, I have the perfect one who snooze in his bed every single morning when the sun shines in that window.

Dollar Store Craft!

Crafting!  It's become my obsession.    Recently I found a resource that introduced me to 'Dollar Store Crafts'.  Now I'm even more obsessed.  So tonight on the way home I hit up the dollar store.

$6.00 and 15 minutes worth of time yielded me some apothecary jars for my bathroom that I've wanted for ages, but they are SOO expensive!

The E6000 glue was 5.00 (at Joann's Fabric) but I'm not going to count it into the  cost since I used just a TINY bit out of the tube.


3 Glass candlesticks from the dollar store :

1 tall glass vase:

1 Short glass:

Finally 1 fluted beta bowl:

The final results (15 minutes later) :

Important things I've learned in the last 15 months.

The last 15 months have been a huge challenge for me in so many ways. My stroke in March 2012 was really a wake up call and I have worked hard to change my lifestyle since then.

My best friend and person I loved very much has all but disappeared out of my life.

Medical bills from the stroke devastated my finances and after struggling for almost a year I finally had to file for bankruptcy(got my final letter yesterday, it's all done and legal).

The last two caused a minor back slide in my weight loss (about 15lbs up from my lowest weight) and it was a LONG difficult winter. I'm back now and as Christina Perri put it, "...it took so long just to feel alright, remember how to put back the light in my eyes."

Here are a few things that I've learned over the last 15 months:

I'm infinitely stronger than I ever could have imagined.

Don't ignore your health. You can only buy so much time before your body starts
to fall apart. You need to bite the bullet and deal with it before it turns
into a crisis.

I love you doesn't mean the same thing to everyone.

If a package says that the contents are "Fat Free" it will, without exception, contain more
sodium and more sugar to make it taste good.

You can't depend on anyone but yourself, no matter who says differently (except
of course my Momz, 'cause she's like someone mashed Wonder Woman and Mother
Theresa into a tiny little package).

Vegetables freaking ROCK! Really, they taste good, keep trying them.

There will be people who will promise to be there for you always... That's their way of giving you the kiss off and trying not feel like an asshole for doing it. What they REALLY mean is that they've found new friends and you shouldn't expect to hear from them again.

Food doesn't NEED salt. With proper use of OTHER seasonings to enhance the
natural flavors.... it tastes pretty darn good without salt.

That some people will consider you a "best friend" when the only means they use
to communicate with you is to 'like' your FB statuses.

I should have had more sympathy for my Dad all those times he suffered from
Gout. Holy Moly, that is some painful crap!

When you're at your lowest mentally and physically there WILL be someone who is
willing to kick you and walk away.

Your body has an UNBELIEVABLE ability to heal damage that you've done to it.
Seriously, it has a miraculous ability to repair some serious issues if
you give it the change and a little help.

When someone hurts you, you deserve the time to wallow and feel bad. Don't let
them turn it around and say that you aren't handling it as well as THEY think you
should be. We all grieve in our own way and screw them if they don't like it.

Find a healthy and productive way to deal with stress, anger, upset, or whatever
other emotion you're dealing with. It will make life 100X easier for you and
everyone around you.

You can find support, cheerleaders, and friendship in the strangest places.
Keep your eyes open for them.

If someone says they want to help you grow or anything similar, call BS on their
ass. What they really mean is "You don't respond to things the way I think you
should, so there's something wrong with you." I say that you are fine just the
way you are and if someone cares about you they'll care about you when you're a
neurotic spastic MESS (If that's who you are ;) ) just be the best neurotic
spastic mess that you can be!

You don't NEED to have meat, vegetables, starch in every meal. Really. The
world will NOT end and the Earth will NOT stop spinning if you don't!

You don't have to be religious to be spiritual.

When you're really down, there is no better bandaid than a good solid face mash
from a cat. Extra points if you get covered in their happy drool at the same
time.

Kenny Rogers knew the secret to a happy life(yes, I said Kenny Rogers)...
"You've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em. Know when to walk away and know when to RUN"

and that "The secret to surviving is knowing what to throw away and knowing what to keep".

I've had a few people ask me for the recipes for the pictures I've posted on facebook in the last few weeks so I'll go ahead and post them on here for anyone who wants them.  Remember that everything I cook is for 1 or 2 servings since it's just me so you'll all have to increase it as you need it.

Potato Leek Soup
Makes 2 generous bowls of soup



1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 Tbsp unbleached flour
1 Large Leek
1/4 of a Large yellow onion, diced
1 large baking potato, rough chopped with the skin on
2 Cups reduced sodium chicken broth
1/4 C Whole Milk
2 Oz Neufchatel Cheese (sold near the cream cheese)
2 Oz Medium Cheddar, shredded
2 Slicked thick cut bacon (I use Oscar Meyer precooked)

Cut off the ugly tops from the leek and cut it in half.  Slice it thinly and then toss into a large bowl of cold water.  Squish the leeks around with your fingers to separate the layers and release any dirt.  Set aside to let the grit settle to the bottom of the bowl.

Melt the butter in a pot, add flour and mix until blended.  Dump in the onion, potato, chicken broth, and skim the leeks out of the water and into the pot.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until the potato are soft.

Add the cheeses and milk.  Remove from heat and cover.  Let sit for 5 minutes.  Mix with immersion blender(or in a real blender) until smooth and creamy.

Serve with a slice of bacon crumbled on top.
Per serving: 380 Calories, 30 Carbs, 4 Fiber, 507 Sodium, 17 Protein

Chicken Parmesan
Serves 2



2 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan
2 Tbsp unbleached flour
8 Oz Thin chicken breasts (I buy foster farms thin cutlets so I don't have to pound them)
Various seasonings (I like garlic powder, parsley flakes, and black pepper)
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 C 4 Ingredient Marinara*
3 Oz Barilla Whole grain angel hair pasta
2 Oz Fresh mozzarella cheese

Cook pasta according the directions and set aside.

Mix the Parmesan  flour, and seasonings on a plate.  Rinse the chicken breasts and shake excess water off (do not pat dry).   Dredge in the dry mixture and press the coatings into the chicken with fingers to cover.

Heat oil in large frying pan on medium and drop chicken in.  Fry until golden and flip over.  Repeat on other side.

Split pasta between two oven safe plates.  Top with chicken, spoon 1/2 cup of marinara over each breast and sprinkle 1 oz of mozzarella over the top of each plate.  Stick under the broiler until brown and serve the hot plate carefully.
Per serving: 369 Calories, 5 Carbs, 0 Fiber, 271 Sodium, 35 Protein

*4 Ingredient Marinara
28 Oz can of Muir Glen Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes (these work the best, they give it a fresh flavor and a beautiful rich color).
1/2 large yellow onion, peeled and quartered
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
1/4 Tsp Kosher Salt

Toss everything into a large sauce pot and simmer for 1.5 hours covered.  Remove lid and simmer on very low for an additional half an hour.  Let cool for 30 minutes and blend well with an immersion blender (or in a real blender).  This incorporates the onion and garlic really well and smooths the sauce.  You can drizzle good olive oil in at this point, but that is not included in the calorie listing below.
Makes about 8 -1/2 C servings
Per serving: 54 Calories, 11 Carbs, 2 Fiber, 436 Sodium, 2 Protein

Healthy(ier) Snacks

Anyone who knows me, knows I *LOVE* my snacks.  It was one of the major factors in me gaining so much weight.

I still eat two snacks (3 if you count my evening 'dessert') almost every day.  That made it necessary to find healthy recipes that would fit into my numbers.

Some of the best hunting grounds for snack ideas(and all manner of recipes) is Pinterest.

Here are a few of the 'gems' that I've found so far.  I've entered the data into MFP recipe builder to get all the macro data that I use.

'Nacho' Rounds
1 Servings
6 Tostitos Tortilla 'scoops' (The chips that look like little bowls).
2Tbsp fresh store Pico De Gallo
1 Oz Tillamook medium Cheddar

Lay the tortilla scoops on a cookie sheet.  Divide pico among each evenly.  Sprinkle a little cheese on each one.
Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly.
190 Calories - 12 Carbs - 1 Fiber - 380 Sodium - 8 Protein


Cut Out Crisps
1 Serving
3 Nosoyo Egg Roll Wrappers
1/4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Splenda Packet
1/2 Tbsp Ground Cinnamon

Using cookie cutters, cut out shapes in the eggroll wrappers. Mix the Splenda and cinnamon together and
set aside.  Brush shapes the Olive Oil and sprinkle with the cinnamon mixture. Bake on cookie sheet in a 325 oven until crispy.
213 Calories - 38 Carbs - 3 Fiber - 411 Sodium - 7 Protein
This one is a bit high in numbers for me, but I thought it looked hella fun so I kept it in this post.


Granola Energy Balls
20 Servings
2 cups oats
2 cups coconut flakes
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup ground flaxseed
1 cup chocolate chips
2/3 cup honey
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all ingredients thoroughly.
Roll into 20 bite-size balls.  Store in fridge.
246 Calories - 21 Carbs - 3 Fiber - 5 Sodium - 6 Protein



 Homemade Jerky (Not the most amazing jerky recipes, imo, but a very easy one)
4 Servings
Beef top round roast (1 lb)
1/4 C Organic Worcestershire sauce (look for one without HFCS)
1/4 Low Sodium Naturally Fermented Soy Sauce
1 tsp Ground Black Pepper
2 tsp Onion Powder

Slice the meat very thinly, with the grain (so it doesn't fall apart).  Put the pieces of meat into a gallon-sized Ziploc freezer bag. Add the rest of the ingredients, close the bag, and mix well by moving the meat around with your hands. Let the meat marinate for at least 8 hours.
Pat the meat dry with paper towels.  Put some foil on the bottom of the oven to catch drips.
Set oven to the lowest setting (this is often 170 degrees) and crack the door open a bit.
Cook until it's jerky
195 Calories - 4 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 850 Sodium - 27 Protein


Strawberry Jerky
1 Serving
15 Large strawberries
Hull and halve the strawberries. Lay wax paper on a cookie sheet ad spread strawberries out on sheet.
200 degrees for 3 hours turning every hour.
26 Calories - 26 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 0 Sodium - 0 Protein


Strawberry Yogurt Bites
1 Serving
10 Large strawberries
2 Oz Chobani Greek Yogurt (vanilla flavored)
Spread wax paper on a plate or cookie sheet.  Set aside.  Hull strawberries. Dip in yogurt and place on plate/cookie sheet. Put in freezer.  When set dip again and put back in freezer until solid.
36 Calories - 6 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 6 Sodium - 1 Protein


Cheese crackers
6 Servings
1 1/2 cups (about 4 oz.) grated Cheddar Cheese
4 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, softened and cut into 4 pieces
3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp Coarse Salt
dash of Paprika
1 Tbsp Whole Milk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a pastry cutter combine the cheese, butter, flour, salt and cayenne pepper until the mixture looks like pea-size crumbs. Add the milk and use your hands to form the dough into a ball. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough about 1/8-inch thick. Use a pizza cutter or a sharp knife to cut the dough into your desired shapes or use some mini cookie cutters. Gently transfer the crackers to an ungreased cookie sheet leaving 1/4-inch between them. Try to make the crackers roughly about the same size so everything will cook evenly. Bake the crackers on the middle rack for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges of the crackers are golden. Cool on baking sheet set on a wire rack. These taste great warm but are also very good at room temperature. Store in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
193 Calories - 11 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 196 Sodium - 6 Protein

"Humans tend to have a relatively set point of mood." Gail Saltz, a New York City psychiatrist 

Like lots of other people, I spent yesterday spending half a billion dollars in my head.  I rarely buy lottery tickets but with such a high payout I had to ‘invest’ 5.00 towards winning.

I was all set to buy the farm from Ma and donate it back to the township so she and my brother could retire.  Pay off Ma’s Condo in Florida and set her up with a bank account she could draw from, set up college funds for a few my friends kids, set up a hefty trust fund for the Nephew so he could pick whatever life he wanted and not worry about money, build my brother’s dream house in Florida, and donate at least 30% of the original amount to charity.  Once that was all done I could take the rest and settle myself on a quiet farm in Ireland with a personal trainer, a chef, and a maid.  The cats and I would be living a nice quiet life……. 

Of course I didn’t win, but it is fun to think about what you’d do with all that LOOT because after all, your troubles would be over….. right?

On Monday I had came across an article on MSNBC that discussed how lottery millionaires are no happier after their payout and I’ve been thinking a lot about that.  Yes, my current money issues would be solved but oh how many MORE troubles would come up.    Troubles that would be much bigger and way more complicated than I think I’d want to deal with. 

The quote at the top was in the article and it really got me thinking about….happiness.  So many people talk about how they’ll be “happier when I retire”  or “Happier when I get a job and move to that new location” or “Happier when I lose 20 lbs” or “Happier if I had more money”…. But would you be happier… really?

I agree with Dr. Gail Salts, that most people have a “relatively set point of mood” and once they finally get whatever it is that they wanted, they are no happier than they were before.  They just find something ELSE to be unhappy about. 

The last 7 or 8 years have shown me that happiness comes from inside, not outside.   You can easily have everything you’ve ever wanted and still not be happy.  You can blame your unhappiness on plenty of things.  “I just can’t catch a break” “Life screws me over” “The universe seems to be against me” … no.  It just means you didn’t get things the way you wanted them and it’s YOU who are making yourself unhappy about it.  Everyone has something they are blessed with like a wonderful family, an abundance of friends who care about them, a job that pays the bills, their health, or whatever. 

If you want to be happy, learn to be happy in your head, in your skin, and in your heart.   You are the only thing that you can control, so learn to be happy with what you have and appreciate it.