Simple Monday

So I kind of felt like a really lame daughter this year because I didn't get my mom anything for Mother's Day; just a phone call and a chat about the usual. Does this make me a bad daughter? In defense, I didn't find anything that my mom would actually want. And I can't use the usual copout of flowers because she doesn't like them. But in honor of my Mom I found this, because if we're being honest, I can never find any of my crap. Maybe next year I'll do better...

I found this next gem on Pinterest. 

Oh the hours of life-sucking goodness I can find on there.

For those sad, sad souls who might not know who this is, this is a real man. 

Clark Gable. 

"Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn." 

Gone With the Wind ring any bells?

I just thought he looked so dashing here. Not to mention I can't express how much I love the name Clark. If I ever change my mind and have a kid, Clark would definitely be in the running.

Last but not least, another dashing man in my life. Scouter. 

 I've been actively trying to take more pictures. Scout unfortunately is the usual model, but recently I did a newborn session and a few quick shots of a new friend. I'll post them later this week. Now that a handful of people from work found out I take pictures, I've received a lot of compliments which I'm trying to accept with confidence. Which is hard, but I'm forcing myself to push past the feeling of insecurity into something bigger and better! 

If Dogs Could Text...

I seriously couldn't stop laughing.

via

It's Friday!!! - Right?

Today is my Friday! I asked to be off work tomorrow since Evan is leaving Saturday. We already have plans to eat breakfast at IHop. Who knows what else we will end up doing. I know Evan still hasn't packed his bag yet...so we will probably we packing and running to the store to grab some last minute stuff. 

Pictures from my iPhone this week.

As you can see I was clearly obsessed with shoes, naps, and Scout this week. I believe its safe to say Scout is generally on this list every week. Look how cute he is. 

I'm doing a photo a day this May. I didn't hop on the band wagon in April, since I didn't realize what it was before April was half-way over, but May is a totally different story! I'm excited :) 

How to talk yourself out of chocolate cake.

Yesterday since it was Easter, I wanted to do something to make the day feel special. 

Since I didn't color Easter eggs, set out my bunny candy bowl, or go to church, (oops) I figured I would make a cake. Dessert is something hard to come by here...if we do have dessert we normally go out or make it specifically to take somewhere and give it away so it doesn't end up sitting at our house with me eating it. I can't be left alone with dessert. I have a problem, and I have no intention of fixing it. I cannot be left to my own devices when it comes to dessert, especially any form of chocolate dessert. Evan is usually my sponsor of sorts, reminding me when I get that obsessive look in my eye to "Step away from the sweets!" 

I made a Chocolate Mayo Cake from my cookbook: The Joy of Cooking. It sounds absolutely disgusting, but I knew the mayo would be like putting scour cream into a cake; all it does is make is super moist and delicious. I was completely out of milk, and this recipe didn't call for it which was a bonus. The cake itself turned out great! The texture is like a cake mix, very soft and fluffy. The chocolate flavor is excellent. I like the melted chocolate instead of a cocoa, it makes for a better chocolate flavor. Note to inexperienced bakers like myself: Do not add anything when you're melting chocolate chips in the microwave (like butter). All it does is turn the chocolate into a clumpy, chalk mess. Try #2 on melting chocolate worked much better. Next time I will add some salt, the recipe doesn't call for it, but it think it would make it perfect. 

As the cakes were cooling on the counter, my phone rang in the living room. It was Evan calling to wish me a Happy Easter. I walked out of the kitchen for .2145 seconds to get it. When I returned someone sampled my cake. I'm sure you can figure out who.

I know I shouldn't get mad, but I did. This week Scout has been asking to be grounded. Exasperated I started wailing "Scout! Come on!" He just stood there and looked completely baffled. He is kind of the Houdini of playing dumb. Annoyed, but determined I continued on.

Things were a slippery slope from here. 

My icing was a complete failure. If you can't tell from the picture it looks like Little Foot and his dinosoar friends walked through my icing. There were puddles of liquid in the bottom...I still can't figure out what I did wrong. The thing that makes me mad about it is the recipe called to 2 whole sticks of butter...2 sticks of organic butter ruined. I hate things being wasted, not to mention the cost of organic butter...ugh I'll get over it, it just makes my wallet let out a slow whine when it opens. It tasted ok, but the texture was awful and ruined any form of good flavor it had. I couldn't make more icing because I was out of powered sugar. 

So I ended up with a half eaten, dog slobbered cake, with no icing. Its almost impossible for me to cook anything without using every bowl, spoon, and pan in my whole house, so by the time I cleaned up the severe mess, I didn't even want to look at the stupid chocolate cake. I took one bite; That ladies and gentleman is how you talk yourself out of chocolate cake. 

RIP Lucy and Happy Easter

You guys remember Lucy right?

- Scout's brand new $60 dog bed - 

I'm sorry, you might not recognize her since she's in about a BILLION different pieces.

We came home to this lovely sight a few nights ago, after going out to dinner...needless to say, Scout was very proud of himself. He thought he had done us the biggest favor that we could ever ask for! Too bad I can't ever recalling wishing for this kind of favor. As much as I wanted to strangle him, he looked way too happy and impressed with himself to not laugh! I'm sorry we let it end this way Lucy, but I guess it was bound to happen sometime!

It makes me really sad that today doesn't feel like Easter. I wish I had gone to church. For some reason I always chicken out going by myself. That needs to change. Scout and I sunbathed outside while I read the last book of the Hunger Games for most of the day. I ate chicken noodle soup with crackers for dinner. It seemed like I should be doing something bigger, better for today. When I talked to my Dad tonight he said it didn't feel like Easter either, so maybe its not just me this year. 

Husbands are distracting

Hence why I've been absent, like, all of last week. Evan finally arrived home from Louisiana from training before he deploys! Thursday night I showered and got all prettied up to pick him up at 11 o'clock at night. Only in the military world do you do this kind of junk. Friday I made sure I had one of his favorite meals ready: cheeseburger pizza. Ultra healthy, I know. This time I had a new pizza dough to try.

Please try this pizza dough recipe! I'm begging you! For the last year and a half or so, I've tried dozens of different pizza dough recipes. Most of them claiming to be "amazing." But, I couldn't find one that made the bubbly, chewy crust that also has texture and crisp. Some have been easy, others a little trickier, but this one is by far the easiest and tastiest dough I've ever had. It seriously rivals most pizzeria's that I know. Which is saying something if I can make it and it turns out phenomenal!  

Basically you mix water, flour, salt, and yeast together and let it sit for 18 hours. Its seriously that easy. I found it in the bon appetite magazine I get in the mail. You can find it online here.

 Over our long weekend (I was off for spring break!) we ate a ton of food, watched movies, and sat on our bums together all weekend; it was awesome. We were just happy to see each other and talk. One thing we decided this weekend, was that Harrisonburg, VA would be an awesome place to retire and buy a farm. (We have never been there...but whose to say it wouldn't be awesome!) 4 hours from the beach, 4 hours from Washington D.C., and 4 hours away from family. It's kind of perfect. The countryside is gorgeous, and it has such a large historical background that makes it even better! (Think Williamsburg, Richmond, and D.C.) The link is for a somewhat negative review of the place, but honestly for us all the negatives are the main positives in our eyes! We're just dreaming here; I'm crossing my fingers for someday.

Not all of us are happy Evan is home though.

When Evan arrived home from Louisiana Scout was pumped...at first. Well, that is, after he woke up and realized what was going on. Now, he's decided that Evan being home isn't so great. He might have a tad bit of jealousy in his bones. Whenever we came home yesterday from the range he was thrilled to see me, then Evan walked through the door after parking the car. He immediately stopped looked at Evan, and then looked at me disgusted. Everytime Evan tries to sit on the couch beside me Scout:

 a) decides he has to pee, so one of us has to get up
b) barks and cries at Evan until he moves, or
c) tries to smash his body on the couch between us

He's such a mama's boy.

One more thing. Evan's birthday is this Saturday and I have 0 ideas of what to do. Any suggestions?

Meet Lucy

"Lucy" for those of you who might not know is Scout's new dog bed. At first he thought it was a big fluffy chew-toy, then decided that it was the perfect thing to dub as his girlfriend...if you catch my drift. SO FREAKING GROSS. We had friends over for dinner, and can you guess what the mid-dinner show was? That's right Scout and Lucy! (Evan put her in her room, and Scout laid in front of the door and cried) 

He is so embarrassing. 

Now we both refer to his bed as another member of the family. (We're really weird, I know) Texts like this from Evan crack me up. "She has green fuzz" like hes genuinely interested in learning something new about our son's new girlfriend. 

I got home and saw Lucy. Poor Lucy...she was laying in a deflated puddle in the middle of the living room floor. Indeed she had green fuzz, and it was strewn about the room like a murder scene. My blood pressure immediately rose. Seriously? I just spend $60 on a new dog bed that you're treating like a cheap date! I snatched it and loathsomely dragged it back the hall screeching "This is why we can't have nice things! Lucy has only been here for a week and you treat her like this!" Scout just followed me back the hall with a glazed-over, innocent I-don't-know-what-your-talking-about look. Exasperated I was crawling around gathering green fuzz like it was payday money and shrieking about the mess. 

Scout sat in the corner with his eyes following me around the room. I looked up and had a - If you weren't so freaking cute, you would totally be dead - moment. But he is totally cute, so it's not like I could stay mad. His eyes were worried (like normal) and weepy. He looked sad and embarrassed like he couldn't believe he gave in to the temptation. He was sitting there waiting for me to call him over to me and tell him it was OK, and that I don't hate him. 

I immediately felt regret. I mean he's a dog, does he really know better? I called him over and he sprinted towards me, practically knocking the wind out of me by landing in my lap. I kissed his face and strached his head. I told him he needed to be nice to Lucy, and that it made mom mad when she had to come home from work to a big mess. He cocked his head to the side and listened intently, taking every word to heart. Why does he have to be so cute? Or is he really good at acting really pitifully sorry?

I think it's the latter. 

If my future kids are as cute as he is, they might be able to get away with anything.

Monday Impressions