Every Girl Knows Statistics LIE

Word of the Post
Today's word is: onomatopoeia
/on*uh*maht*uh*pee"uh/ noun
Words that imitate the sound they stand for; Crash, bang and boom, for instance.
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I added a counter to my site. I wanted to see some statistics, because I only get a few comments for some posts, but I don't know how many times any of you may read what I have to say. It skews the stats just a bit to know that I count for each time I look at the site while updating. I still need to find a counter that shows me all hits, unique hits, and not myself. But it seemed like a good idea to start somewhere. It comes with a sponsor link, and I chose Lane Bryant, because that randomly came up, and it is something I would use (if I had money to spend on clothes!). So, go check out their coupons for me, and keep my counter busy!

Several people have said they like the recipes, so I am hoping to continue those on occasion. I find I am often in a rut about what to cook. I have stacks upon stacks of cookbooks. When we got married, I asked my mother-in-law to tell people that I wanted cookbooks. I received many at our various showers, and had no duplicates. I have added several since then. For Christmas, I got Jessica Seinfeld's "Deceptively Delicious", and just last night I got Missy Chase Lapine's "Sneaky Chef". I figure that if Ms. Lapine is going to accuse Mrs. Seinfeld of stealing her idea, then I should probably buy both books and compare them for myself. Ms. Lapine seems to take into consideration that you CAN add veggies to anything, but questions which ones you SHOULD add to each dish. Putting Cauliflower in Macaroni and Cheese doesn't sound so bad, but Broccoli in Brownies? That sounds bad to me. Anyway, I am willing to experiment, and maybe get some of the veggies past myself and DH to make us more healthy.

Speaking of experimenting, I tried something new the other night. This was last Monday, before the stew (which we still have at least one serving of). I was thinking on the idea of a Shepherd's Pie, and came up with a Joe-like version that tasted pretty good.

Pie-less Shepherd Joe
Large skillet (I used the largest one I had, but it could have been done in a 12 inch)
1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
1/4 cup frozen diced onion
1/2 cup frozen diced green sweet pepper
1 can (10 ounces) Rotel (I used Mild)
1 can (8 ounces) Tomato Sauce
Spice to taste (remember my fondness for the spice rack). I recommend especially: a shake or two of Worcestershire sauce, cumin, chili powder, cilantro, black pepper, and garlic powder.


Simmer over medium heat, stirring often, until most of the liquid evaporates out, and you are left with a yummy sauce.

Serve on Toast, top with Cheese, and maybe add a side of Sour Cream.

This turned out pretty tasty, and I remembered to get pictures of it for you. A good day!

I got to baby sit the Candy Kids yesterday. Regular baby sitter's own child was sick with a fever, so late at night, I was called in as the pinch hitter. Jelly Bean was her usual aged 2 attitude, but still very sweet. She is doing well at the potty training. I had to keep asking her if she needed to go... and usually the answer was no. At one point, I just said, "let's go", so she didn't really have a way out. She really did sit, and actually did something twice, but she has no patience. "I done, that's all, there is no more to squeeze out." She does not like sitting there longer than she has to. So, at least there is no desire to read a magazine or something. She gets 3 m&m's when she accomplishes the use of the potty. Very cool reward. I even let her pick the colors she wanted. She did a lot of telling me no, hoping that I would not remind her that she needs to obey and respect anyone who is in charge. I did remind her. She also tried a lot of testing the rules, hoping that I would not know them all. Sneaky little thing. She did the most of her acting up when Mommy came home. I wonder what that was about? (Did I mention that she's 2?)

Gum Drop is growing so big! His sister was so little, and still is, I guess. He is now almost 5 months old. He doesn't like to sit down very much, he loves to stand and kick. We practiced walking a little yesterday. He did his own motion of one foot in front of the other. I just balanced him, and gave him the leaning cue to move the foot without the weight. He enjoys being on his back, and can almost completely roll over. He gets right on the verge, and then that arm on the bottom stops him. He also rolls from his front to his back, but he seems to be surprised when that happens. He puts his arms straight down by his sides when he is on his tummy, as if he thinks he can fly or something. (He was Superman for Halloween) He needs to get his arms up and his knees under him, so he can get the motion of crawling down. I have a feeling he will crawl for a day or two, and decide that walking is faster and easier. I propped him up on the arm of the couch with pillows for support, and he discovered his knee. He was very serious about examining what this new thing was.

Beware of people who don't like cats. ~ Irish proverb