My cluster of jams.

New Blog!

2011-06-22T16:39:00.000-07:00

This blog is set to my old email address, and I am not allowed to change it! So, I have created a new blog: www.myclusterofjams.blogspot.com. I hope you will read it :)

Hello World

2010-06-09T07:18:00.001-07:00

This is our daughter, Maple Beth Parsons. Her sweet little face came into this world on April 11, a little after 3:00 pm. She was born a week early, at The Birth Center, all natural, after just 14 hours of labor. It was the most insane experience of my life. If you want more details, feel free to ask, I love talking about it. I feel so blessed to have had such an amazing experience, and am so grateful for Jesse, my mom, and Bess, who were all there to support me as we waited for Maple. She is a really good baby, and we love her so much.
She is breastfed, sleeps in bed with us, and I wear her on me a good deal of the time. Some people might call this attachment parenting, we call it, what works for us. I fell like I am an advocate for things like these, but I realize that everyone has their own way of doing things. Maple is only two months old (which is crazy!), but I already know how important it is to not force your opinions on other people, no matter how strongly you feel about them. With that said, I feel like the methods we use, help me to be the best mama that I can be. Being a parent is hard! Being a parent is also amazing. Her little body is sleeping on me right now, and right now there is no where else I would rather be, and nothing else I would rather be doing. Notice that I say, right now. Later tonight, or tomorrow, or next week, I might not feel the same way. It is hard losing your independence. Sometimes I want free hands, so I can cook a nice dinner for my husband, or water my plants, or practice my hula hooping skills (yes, Jesse and I just bought a hula hoop). Anyway, we are adjusting, and it is totally worth it. I feel like there is so much more to say, but my brain is not functioning at fully capacity yet.

Baby Baby

2010-01-28T08:31:00.000-08:00

So obviously I am already failing at my food journal. Such is life. Jesse is back to work this week. I am relieved, but reminding myself that he works for crazy people, so anything can change at anytime. For now, things are back to normal.
Our housemate John is moving out this weekend, to make room for the baby! I am so excited to start fixing up the room. I have had an amazing pregnancy, and love being pregnant, but nine months is so long to wait for something so exciting!

Lemon Olive Oil Cake

2010-01-28T08:24:00.000-08:00

Good Lord! This cake turned out beautifully. It is a chiffon cake, and the recipe can be found at www.epicurious.com. I topped it with some sweetened sour cream, sour cream with a little bit of agave nectar, and it was perfect.

Breakfast for dinner

2010-01-28T08:18:00.000-08:00

What do you do when you do not feel like cooking dinner? Make breakfast! Scrambled eggs, roasted potatoes, sauteed kale, and whole wheat toast (I made that bread!).

Seitan Pot Pie

2010-01-28T08:03:00.000-08:00

This was dinner from one night last week. It was an experiment, that I would say was successful. I sauteed some onion, garlic, and carrot. Once it was soft I sprinkled a spoonful on flour over it, to create a roux. I stirred in some veggie stock, and a little bit of milk. Then I added in the seitan, frozen peas, salt, pepper, and thyme. I did not feel like making a crust for it, so I made biscuits instead. I used one of Mark Bittman's recipes from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, which I had used before, and loved. The seitan mixture goes into a casserole dish, and the raw biscuits go on top. I baked it for as long as the biscuit recipe called for, which was around ten minutes. Oh I just remembered that I wanted potatoes in there at the last minute, so I cut some small yukon golds into quarters, boiled them, and then added them to the mixture.

I love yerba matte.

2010-01-21T06:42:00.000-08:00

Tuesday......
Breakfast: steel cut oats with maple syrup, toasted walnuts, and sliced banana
Snack: scone
Lunch: leftover udon noodle stuff
Snack: crackers and cheese
Dinner: seitan pot pie (pictures and recipe coming soon)
Dessert: chocolate tart

Wednesday.......
Breakfast: eggs and toast
Snack: carrots and hummus
Late Lunch/Early Dinner: Nodding Head! french dip and spanish fries
Dessert: chocolate ice cream with peanut butter and crushed homemade graham crackers (pictures and recipe coming soon, these are totally worth making from scratch)

Jesse's mom gave us some hope last night. She is a school bus driver, therefore has three months off every summer when school is not in session, and is able to collect unemployment during that time. Did you know that you do not have to get laid off in order to collect unemployment?! If you are available to work, and your job is not providing you with work, you can collect. So guess what? We are going to take advantage of this system that we have been paying into for years. The first week is a "waiting period", but after that you can collect. So starting next week, we should be getting something. If Jesse's job provides him with work again, great, he will work. Anytime from here on out, if they do not provide him with work, he can immediately start collecting again. You can start and stop it whenever you need to, and only have to deal with the one week "waiting period" once a year. It is a weird thing for us to have to do, but we are so grateful that we are able to.

Food Journal

2010-01-19T08:15:00.001-08:00

My friend Lana has been keeping a food journal, which I am super into, so I am going to do the same. Yesterday, 1/18, I had:
Breakfast: egg, cheese, and veggie sausage on a whole wheat bagel
Snack: scone, two clementines
Snack: chips and hummus
Dinner: udon noodle salad
Dessert: chocolate tart
I am not going to play the pregnant card, I feel like I always eat as much as I do currently. Well, maybe I eat a little more since being pregnant, but not that much more. I was running around yesterday, so I did not have lunch, just a couple of snacks.
It is funny how I recently wrote about how smooth my life is. Jesse's job has been pretty unsteady the last two weeks, so he has decided to look for a new job. Great timing right? Nothing like a little job/money stress right before you have a baby. So I have decided to stay at my job an extra month, taking us to the end of February, about six weeks before the babe graces us with her presence. I know that something will work out, but staying calm is easier said than done. I guess we need to be taken out of our comfort zone every once in a while.

Udon Noodle Salad

2010-01-19T08:03:00.000-08:00

Last night's dinner did not come from a recipe, it was one of those, just throw it together meals. It consisted of udon noodles, fried tofu, grated carrot, bean sprouts, scallions, cilantro, chopped peanuts, and peanut sauce. It was warm when we ate it, but I will eat it cold today for lunch, it is great either way.

Peanut Sauce:

all natural peanut butter

soy sauce

sesame oil

rice wine vinegar

brown sugar

fresh garlic

fresh ginger

Sorry, you know me, I do not measure, I just add things until it tastes good. You can whisk these ingredients together, but I like the sauce really creamy, so I use my mini food processor. This is a super easy weeknight meal, and it is so good!

Orange and Oat Scones

2010-01-19T07:55:00.000-08:00

On Sunday my friend Mae and her co-worker Kelly came over for a hair cutting party. I round up five or six people, and she cuts our hair for the awesome price of $20. I made some orange and oat scones for us to snack on.......
They were so yummy! The recipe can be found at www.101cookbooks.com, one of my favorite blogs. All I have been wanting lately is a cup of tea, and a lightly sweetened baked good. Scones fit the mold perfectly.

Hiccups, Dr. Bronner's, and Snickerdoodles

2010-01-15T07:46:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I experienced something very strange in my belly. It was a consistant thump, too strong to be a pulse, and too consistant to be kicking. It was totally weird, and stopped after a few minutes. I was reading the weekly growth update on baby center this morning, and read that the baby might start getting hiccups around this time! So, miss baby must have been hiccuping yesterday. I am six months pregnant today!
I know that it is not good for you to shower and wash your skin everyday in the winter, but I cannot help it, I have to shower everyday. I tired showering and not washing my skin, but it was too weird. Then I turned to my old buddy Dr. Bronner. I always keep a bottle of Dr. Bronner's around, but do not use it everyday, I like other body wash too. Well Dr. Bronner's is AWESOME on your skin during the winter. Jesse showers everyday during the week because he is usually pretty dirty after work, but his skin get crazy dry and rashy in the winter. He has also been using Dr. Bronner's everyday, and I think it is helping.
I made snickerdoodles the other day for cell, and man, they never disapoint. I use whole wheat pastry flour, in place of regular white flour, whenever possible, and it makes me feel a little better about baking goodies :) You can hardly tell the difference when you use whole wheat pastry flour, and I actually prefer it now. Of course, I forgot to take pictures.

Happy New Year

2010-01-10T11:54:00.000-08:00

Jesse and I drove to Miami the day after Christmas, in a 24 foot box truck. He had to take some furniture down there to install in his boss' vacation condo, in a Trump Tower. We drove 15 hours the first day, and 17 hours the second day. By the time we got there, my ankles and feet were doubled in size, from not moving around enough. Jesse and his coworker spent the next four days installing the furniture, while I slept, read, and cried. We finally left at 6:00 pm on New Year's Eve, drove for a few hours, and then got a hotel. Jesse had beer, I had sparkling cider, and we fell asleep around 10:30. We then drove for two days, and returned late on the 2nd. Our puppies greeted us at the door, and home never felt so good. Miami is the worst place in the world. I do not recommend doing this while five months pregnant. Sitting in a bouncy truck for that long was painful, eating fast food makes me want to die, and my emotions are raging, so the whole thing was a nightmare. Happy New Year? I think not. Luckily my spirits were lifted once I got back in my kitchen :)

I will be six months pregnant this week! While having our first cell meeting of the new year last week, people were talking about where they are at, and there seemed to be a theme: everyone is trying to figure out what they should be doing. While sitting there listening, I came to my own realization, I do not have anything to figure out. I have a child growing inside of me. In about three months, I will give birth to this child, and then I will take care of her. Obviously, there is a lot to figure out when you become a parent, but until I become one, I am just sailing along. This is both an amazing, and weird feeling. I will be done with my nanny job at the end of this month, leaving me with two to three months of free time before the baby is here. I have come up with lots of fun things to do during that time......
*Finish making quilts for myself, my sister, and my brother, out of my dad's old tee shirts
*Master the art of baking homemade bread
*Prepare the baby's room!
These are just a few of my ideas. I am super excited about all of the other babies on the way! It is nice to know a lot of other people entering parenthood around the same time as us.
It feels good to feel "ready" to have a baby, especially when said baby was not planned. We had been talking about trying this year, which I think helped prepare us for finding out I was pregnant, last year. We would not change it for the world. We already love this little lady so much, and we are so freaking excited. We have more money in our savings account than we have ever had before, and we have no debt to speak of, other than our lovely little home. I am not bragging, we just feel so blessed, and as prepared as we possibly can be. Parenthood, how wild!
I want to be better about blogging. Maybe I will post some pictures of all of the new awesome kitchen gear I got for Christmas, and try to be better about taking pictures of all of the food I spend my time making. Oh, I have also been spending a lot of time cleaning out the house, and organizing. Nesting? Maybe. All I know is that it is very satisfying.

Freeze!

2009-10-09T11:34:00.000-07:00

We really need to get a new camera. There have been many photo ops lately, but nothing to capture them with. I think we might get around to fixing that this weekend.
I spent a lot of time back in the kitchen this week, which felt really good. Now that we are entering our second trimester (!), I am getting some of my energy back, and have not been quite as picky about what I want to eat. On Monday I roasted a bunch of pumpkin, and froze it for future use. It is slightly cheaper than buying the canned stuff, and I just really enjoy the process. The smell of the pumpkin as it is roasting, roasting the pumpkin seeds, all of it is great. I also had my first go at cooking dried beans. If you have a pressure cooker, this is one of the best ideas ever. Normally you would soak the beans overnight, and then spend 4-6 hours the following day cooking them. With the pressure cooker, you are done, start to finish, in 30 min! I have been wanting to do this for a long time, because it is way more cost effective. A can of organic beans is roughly $1.19. One pound of organic dried beans is roughly $1.29. You are getting four times the amount, for nearly the same price. We eat a lot of beans at our house, so this is awesome for us. They do not last super long once they are cooked, but you can freeze them. I bought 16oz containers, so I have a bunch of can sized servings waiting for me in the freezer. Now we need a second freezer.
Who knows if anyone reads this, but I like writing about the things I enjoy doing.

Neither Here Nor There

2009-10-01T06:41:00.000-07:00

Ah, life. The past couple of weeks have been consumed by house hunting. Jesse and I really want to get out of the city, but I am not sure that now is the time. We had been looking at possibly moving to Lansdowne, a cute suburb 12 miles outside of the city. Unfortunately nothing that we were interested in, ended up working out, provoking more thoughts. Every part of us wants to get out of the city, except the people part. Even though we would not be moving very far, our friends would not be as close as they are now. We are going to have a baby in April, which will obviously bring many changes. I am terrified of being isolated. I have no idea how to remedy these things. So for now, I think we will stay in the city. I cry every day, and am never sure of what we should do.
On a lighter note, we saw Whip It last night. I totally want to do roller derby after this baby is born.

Life

2009-09-17T06:55:00.000-07:00

There obviously has been a lack of posts. Excuse number one, I am pregnant, and nothing has sounded appetizing lately. Well nothing other than sushi, which I am not allowed to eat. Excuse number two, our house got broken in to, and the bastards stole our camera. This will probably turn in to more than a food blog. All I think about is this baby, but I will try not to bore you :) I am ten weeks, and things have been decent so far. There has been a lot of exhaustion, and some nausea, but I have yet to throw up. I am very grateful. We have our very first appointment at the Birth Center tomorrow, which I have been anxiously awaiting. My mom had gastric bypass surgery on Monday, and is recovering well. My nephew just turned one, and is amazing. He is going to love having a cousin. I was in three weddings this summer, and attended six I think. Fall is approaching, which I am ecstatic about. I am so excited to be pregnant in the fall and winter. Oh I lied when I said all I think about is this baby, I also think about moving. Germantown seems to be the best option, because we want to get out of the city and have more space, while also staying connected to the people we love. Dream house has yet to be found, and unfortunately I do not have any patience. I think that is it, in a nut shell.

Bulgur Lettuce Wraps

2009-07-15T18:41:00.000-07:00

Whenever I am at a loss for dinner ideas, I usually end up doing something involving a grain that I have on hand, and whatever else I have on hand. I just laughed as a re-read that, because it is so unspecific. I knew I wanted to use the fresh fennel that I had just received in our CSA. I love fresh fennel! Anyway, so I sauteed it with some onion, and then threw in some basil sausage (thank you TJ's) that I had thawed five min earlier in a bowl of hot water. Oh, before I started all that, I put the bulgur on the stove. Everything was done around the same time, so I mixed it all together, and then went searching for something green to put on the plate. There was heaps and heaps of lettuce in the fridge, lettuce wraps anyone?

White Lasagna

2009-07-15T18:29:00.000-07:00

I love white lasagna, so much that I never make lasagna with red sauce anymore. Let me warn you, this is not the healthier version. Here is a break down of the layers:
1. noodles
2. cheese mixture (ricotta, mozzarella, parm, fresh basil, fresh parsley, fresh oregano)
3. veggie mixture (sauteed spinach, zucchini, onion, garlic)
4. bechamel sauce
5. noodles
6. cheese mixture
7. veggie mixture
8. bechamel sauce
9. noodles
10. mozzarella
11. parm
12. fresh basil
Bake at 400 degrees until brown and bubbly. Indulge.

Israeli Couscous Summer Salad

2009-07-15T18:17:00.000-07:00

Sometimes things turn out good, sometimes things turn out bad. This lovely dish? Well it turned out good, let me tell you! I made the couscous, and then added some caramelized onions! Then I cooked some yellow squash in balsamic vinegar, over high heat, so it caramelized! Then I chopped up some fresh basil and sprinkled it over everything! I am adding so many exclamation points because I seriously loved this dish. The onions, squash, and basil all came from our CSA. It is so fun when you can make things come together, without any planning. I hope you are encouraged to get creative.

Trader Joe's

2009-07-15T17:55:00.000-07:00

I have my complaints about TJ's, but I also love them. There are many specific things that I only buy from there, because they have awesome prices for awesome things. Let me start with the non food items, sunblock and aloe vera gel. These are things that I have only recently discovered, and am ecstatic about. I bought a 4 oz bottle of all natural Alba sunblock from Whole Foods for $7.99...... then I discovered that TJ's sells a 8 oz bottle of their sunblock for $5.99.......... and they are made of the exact same ingredients! I have been at the shore all week using this stuff, and it totally works. Their all natural aloe vera gel is under $3 for 12 oz, and is 99% pure aloe.
Another thing that I love is their 99cent pizza dough! Do not get me wrong, I love making things from scratch, but the reality is, I do not always feel like it. In comes the pre-made dough. Slap on some pasta sauce, mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, and fresh basil, and you have yourself a delicious quick week night meal. Or slap on whatever you have laying around, seriously, that is the way you have to roll.

This week's CSA

2009-06-24T15:56:00.000-07:00

How beautiful is all of this? This week we got two bags of spinach, a head of red leaf lettuce, beets, radishes, basil, two kinds of green onions, snap peas, and zucchini. I have no idea what to do with all of these green onions......
but last night I put the beets and basil to good use. I made whole wheat penne, fresh pesto, and sauteed already roasted beets with some onion and the beet greens. Use the beet greens! They are very similar to swiss chard, and very edible.

For the pesto:

a bunch of fresh basil

a bunch of fresh parsley

some pine nuts

some fresh parmesan

olive oil

salt and pepper

Throw everything in a food proccessor, except the olive oil. Blend it, and then add the olive oil until you have the consistancy you want. You will notice that I did not give any actual measurements..... this is because I do not really measure anything. Add ingredients until it tastes good, it is hard to screw things like this up.

For the veggies I sauteed the white parts of some green onion, added in chopped beet greens, and then added in sliced roasted beets. Lucky for me these were already in my fridge, left over from last week.

Add the pesto and the veggies to some pasta, and eat up! I really loved how this turned out. Even Jesse liked it, and he says that he does not like beets.

Veggie and Herb Cream Cheese

2009-06-22T12:09:00.000-07:00

Hello! Yes, I am still spending lots of time in the kitchen, just not too much time in front of the computer. However, today I am sick, and have plenty of time to stare at this glowing screen. I did not develop any kind of hunger until around 2:00, at which point I wanted something simple, but really good. I made a veggie and herb cream cheese, which contained the following:

1 package cream cheese, softened

3 radishes, grated

1 carrot, grated

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/4 cup chopped dill

1/4 cup chopped scallions

salt and pepper

You can add more or less of any of those things, or add something to the list. I just happen to have this stuff. Mix it all up, and slather it on something containing lots of carbohydrates. I made some toast, added the cream cheese, a fried egg, and some sliced cucumber. I hate computers, which is probably why it is so hard for me to find motivation to post. My motivation will have to be wanting to share all of the organic local produce that my fridge is overflowing with, with you. Make sense?

Let the grilling begin

2009-04-06T17:49:00.000-07:00

As soon as the weather starts getting warm, we grill all the time. It is nice to have other things to accompany the grilled items, so on Thursday I made some type of baked polenta. It was basically polenta spread out in a round pan, baked until crispy, and then topped with caramelized onions and goat cheese.
On the skewers there are balsamic sweet potatoes and zucchini, with a side of kale. The perfect meal for a spring night.

Bialys

2009-04-06T17:35:00.001-07:00

Last Wednesday Jesse came home to find me sulking on the couch. I had attempted to make dough for bialys, and it would not rise. Side note, my bread never rises. I even tried Alton Brown's method of putting the dough in the oven to rise, with a pan of hot water under it, so it stays warm. Still, it was not working. I had given up, but Jesse decided to take the sad ball of gluten and put it in the yogurt maker, which stays at a constant warm temperature. Sure enough, about an hour later that stupid ball of dough had doubled in size.
Bialys are like a bagel, with a yummy caramelized onion and poppy seed filling. After Jesse saved the dough, I continued on with the proccess. It was 10:00 at night by the time they came out of the oven, but I have never been so satisfied. They were beauties....

Birthday weekend

2009-03-30T18:54:00.000-07:00

My birthday was yesterday, I turned 26. I was reassured by several people that 26 is still considered mid 20's. Jesse started things off right on Friday by bringing flowers home, and making me spring rolls for dinner. They were amazing, and he is the best.

On Saturday night we went with eight of our dearest friends to Marrakesh, an authentic moraccan heaven. Not only do you have to have a reservation to get in, but you have to knock on the door to get in. Then you enjoy a six course meal, hand washing, and a belly dancer. We brought several bottles of wine, and were there for about four hours. I could not have asked for a more wonderful night.

On Sunday, my actual birthday, we had lots of friends over for a barbq. It was supposed to storm, but we had sunshine all day...... until the ten minute hail storm hit around 7:00...... it was wild. I think it was one of the best birthdays/ birthday weekends I have had in a long time.

After a coupon, some store credit, some birthday money, and some tax return money, I adopted my new child:

Breakfast for dinner

2009-03-30T18:42:00.000-07:00

These pictures do not do this meal justice. Last week sometime, (I am real good at posting things right away huh?) I made potato and carrot latkes, savory crepes with ricotta and caramelized onions, and roasted beets. It took over an hour, and made lots of dirty dishes, but it was worth it.
I have been roasting beets a lot lately. They are super nutritious, and affordable all year long. It is important to keep them whole, with the skin on, because then you do not lose any of the goodness. Wrap each one in foil, and bake for about an hour in a 400 degree oven. Remove the foil, and when the beets are cool enough to handle, peel them, the skin will slide right off. Slice them however you like!

Busy Busy

2009-03-25T12:56:00.000-07:00

It is hard to remember what we have eaten during the past week, things have been nuts. Nothing bad, but between finishing work on the second floor, and Bess moving in, there has hardly been time to eat. There have been burritos, salmon burgers, and MACARONI AND CHEESE! As you can tell, this was my favorite. When I make mac and cheese, I use whole wheat pasta and whole wheat bread for the bread crumbs, so that it is not so unhealthy. On Friday I added sauteed kale, and used smoked gouda and sharp cheddar....... oh man was it good. Other than that, I have been living on hummus. I use three or four cans of beans, which makes a lot, but I go through it so fast. Yogurt and granola are another current favorite, Bess and I were just talking about how it reminds us of spring. Making your own yogurt is much more affordable than buying it, and it takes very little time. I will post pictures of the creamy goodness, and the yogurt maker that I use, as soon as my camera battery is charged.....

CSA

2009-03-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention this, we signed up for a new CSA, Red Earth Farms. We did Lancaster Farm Fresh last year, and were not totally happy with it. This year they raised their prices, so we decided to go shopping for a new CSA. We stumbled upon Red Earth Farms, and loved everything we read, so we signed up and were accepted. I did not know this at the time, but apparently they fill up really fast and are really hard to get in to. I am so glad we made it!

Cell Tuesdays

2009-03-19T13:14:00.001-07:00

Tuesday's dinner was kind of a pantry meal again. I knew we were going to be having veggie burgers, because that is usually what we do on a busy night, but I wanted something else to go along side them. First thought, bean salad, with whatever fresh ingredient I can find. A can of black beans, a can of kidney beans, a can of garbanzo beans, diced celery, diced cherry tomatoes, chopped parsley, and dijon vinegarette, which I always make and keep on hand. I topped it off with some goat cheese. Jesse made the veggie burgers on the grill, and we ate dinner outside!

I wanted to make a savory snack for cell, since a lot of people in my cell gave up sweets for lent. This snack was savory, but sweet as well, but with no added sugar. Carmelized onion dip.....

All you do is add the caramelized onions, some onion powder, and salt to some sour cream. So easy, but so amazing.

Monday Madness

2009-03-17T16:19:00.000-07:00

After a totally crazy day at work on Monday, I came home and cooked all night. Our kitchen has been lacking fresh veggies since we have been working on the house, so I have had to get creative the past few nights. Sunday I made a last minute pot of split pea soup before pm, but did not have time to take any pictures. It is such a basic soup, all you need is split peas, veggie stock, and onion. The results are so rustic and yummy.
Last night I made a risotto with peas and lemon, and threw some sauteed chicken sausage on top. Risotto is made with arborio rice, stock, onion, parmesan cheese, and really whatever else you have on hand. I chose a bag of frozen peas, and a lemon, using the juice and the zest. If you have never made this before, you should.
We have cable now, so I have been soaking up food network. This woman on there yesterday made caramel pecan sundaes..... I of course had to have one. Jesse ran out for some vanilla ice cream, and I made caramel sauce for the first time. All it is is water and sugar, cooked very specifically, and then heavy cream is added. Healthy huh? We have a whole jar left over in the fridge.....

A little of this, a little of that.

2009-03-07T19:12:00.000-08:00

Time has been racing by lately, and so much is going on. February was vacation month, taking Jesse and me to Maine and then Nashville. We got more snow on Monday than we have had in two years, and today it was warmer outside than it was in our house. I am SO excited for spring. I am SO excited for April 1st when Bess moves in. We are spending all of our weekends in March working on the house, getting it ready for the shuffle of belongings and people. I will be 26 this month. We are preparing to sue the woman who hit Jesse on his scooter. My nephew Elliott is six months old and so incredible. Jesse is loving and patient and forgiving. He also drives me nuts sometimes. My mom never leaves her house. She tells me not to worry about her, but I do. My mother-in-law gave me the sweetest little gift today when she came over. Banjo and Ramona bring so much joy to my life. I forgave someone last weekend. I hate PMS. It makes me feel crazy and hate myself. Today I considered using bleach to clean something, then I decided that it was a horrible idea. I love and prefer natural things. I REALLY want a Dyson vacuum.

A sandwhich, and a brunch treat.

2009-02-23T13:11:00.000-08:00

On Thursday I asked Jesse if he would make me dinner. I love when he cooks for me because he always looks up fun new recipes to try. This time it was fried green tomato sandwhiches and sweet potato fries! Only the grocery store did not have green tomatoes, so we had fried ripe tomato sandwhiches. I think the ripe tomatoes were hard to use because they were juicy and fell apart when you ate them, but it was still an amazing meal.

I had some ladies over yesterday for a haircutting party, and wanted to provide a little brunch snack. These blueberry scones/biscuts are a new favorite of mine. Heidi and I made them a few weeks ago, and I could not wait to make them a second time.

Random Bits

2009-02-18T12:35:00.000-08:00

For those of you who do not know, Jesse has a blog, all about wood working. jesseparsons.blogspot.com, check it out.
We were just on vacation in Maine for a week, which was awesome, but we are glad to be home. I suck at snowboarding, it is really hard...... I felt worse after snowboarding than I did after I got hit by a car. With that said, I would like to give it another try before the season is over.
Last night's dinner was awesome, but the camera battery was dead so I could not take any pictures. I made black bean and sweet potato soup, with corn scones. I am trying to be more regular about blogging, but am obviously not succeeding.
On another note, Jesse suggested that for lent we do not buy anything that is made outside of the USA. I love this idea, and we decided to practice when we went to Target on Sunday. Guess what? We were pleasantly surprised and pleased. Almost all of the Target brand stuff is made right here in our country, as well as some name brand stuff. The only thing we left the store with that was made outside of the country was condoms. I told Jesse that we could stop using them, but he did not go for it, haha. It takes a few seconds to read labels, but it is well worth it in my opinion.

Alcohol

2009-01-31T12:07:00.000-08:00

We cracked open the first bottle of home brew last night! It was seriously awesome. Here you can see Jesse and John celebrating......

Then today Heidi and I made lemoncello! Right now it is just vodka with lemon rhind soaking in it, and in about two months when it is done, we will add simple syrup to it. The perfect thing to welcome spring.

We also made vanilla extract! Vodka with whole vanilla beans soaking in it. This too will take about two months.

I cannot stop looking at these beautiful bottles, perched in my kitchen window. We went to "The Container Store" this morning, because what better place is there to find a wide variety of bottles and jars? Plus, I had a gift card.

Tofu Wontons

2009-01-28T16:42:00.001-08:00

Here are the ingredients for tonight's dinner:

Seems simple enough, right? It was super simple, just a little time consuming when it came to assembly. To be honest, I did not mind. What else do I have to do on a cold slushy night while I am waiting for Lost to come on? I have to give Jesse credit for the delicious soy sesame dipping sauce.

Polenta Pizza

2009-01-26T15:56:00.000-08:00

I am back on the wagon! I have been baking, and cooking, so much lately, and decided that it is time to share again. Shall I just post ideas and pictures? Or recipes as well? I would love some feedback. Also, sorry for my shitty pictures, it seems as though there is no way around it. Too bad I do not live with Carina! Anyway, here is tonight's dinner, polenta pizza. The only thing I would have done differently is pre-bake the crust a bit, before topping it and baking it some more. Topping it and then baking it did not quite do the job, but it was awesome anyway.

Happy New Year?

2009-01-12T13:30:00.000-08:00

It has been almost three months since I have posted something. Now all I have to say is, I just gave myself an enema. It was my first one ever, and it was only partially satisfying. After eating numerous fiber filled foods yesterday, and getting nothing but the worst stomach cramping ever, and spending half the night curled up in a ball crying, I needed some relief. I have been having stomach problems again, and my appointment with the GI doctor is not for two weeks. My mom told me to take milk of magnesia, so Jesse is stopping at CVS on his way home from work.

Parsons' on scooter vs. car.... part two

2008-10-22T07:59:00.000-07:00

It seems that Jesse and I should not ride scooters anymore. On monday morning a woman driving a black SUV decided to run a stop sign at 9th and Girard, causing my dear husband to collide with her. After two days in the hospital, three staples in his head, and lots or cat-scans and ex-rays, I finally got to bring him home last night around 5:00. There is quite a large blood stain on the road if you care to see it. I might write more details at some point.

I feel sick....

2008-10-01T11:09:00.000-07:00

Sick might be an understatement. My brother is out of control. He has no job, no place to live, no friends, is satanic, and is now using crystal meth again. Not only using it, but selling it. Because he has no place to live, my mom feels as though she has to let him stay with her, but has informed him that if he lives with her he cannot do, or deal, drugs. It has only been one night, and she already had to tell him to leave because he was treating her so horribly. He then called my grandmother with the sob story of how my mom kicked him out, and she aggreed to let him stay there. None of these words are even doing the situation justice. I am worried about the safety of my mom, my sister, and my grandmother. I do not even care what happens to Alex at this point. I do not even know him anymore. He is 23 years old and we have been going through this for ten years. I do not understand how much longer this can go on for. I am at the end of my rope, and I am 3000 miles away. How will the rest of my family get through this?

Fall Is Here!

2008-09-24T12:48:00.001-07:00

and I am so pumped. To welcome it on Monday, I made a moroccan stew and cornbread, yum. Tuesday I spent the day in the 'burbs with Carina and Michael Henneghan, where we made a stop at a local farm! I picked up some mums and decorative gourds, which I had been wanting so bad. It was the perfect start to my favorite season.
This morning I went to the oral surgeon, because I really need to have my wisdom teeth removed. After waiting more than an hour to see this dude, I find out that my teeth are impacted, which is a good thing. I do not have dental insurance, but my health insurance said they would cover it if the teeth were impacted. This is all good news. Then I find out more good news: it is going to cost me a total of $60, not the $575 I though it was going to be! WOOHOO! It is a long story, but the end result is amazing, especially since I am currently unemployed.
Speaking of being unemployed, it is so boring! I have begun the search for a part time job, because I need something to do.

Elliott Ryan Parsons

2008-09-11T18:07:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since my last post, but this is def worth posting. I watched my nephew enter this world, yesterday at noon. Elliott was 8.8 lbs and 22 inches long! He was also posterior, which slowed things down a bit, but she got him out just fine. My sister-in-law Miranda (Jesse's brother's wife) was so amazing throughout her extremely long labor. I acted as her sister, and as her doula. I am so blessed to have been there....

Making Things

2008-08-11T07:23:00.000-07:00

This weekend was spent well, equal amounts of productivity and fun. Friday I had breakfast with Marlee and Bess, to celebrate Marlee's birthday. After that, Bess went with me to get tattooed by Luke. It came out awesome, and I was reminded how I am much more of a baby about the healing process than I am about getting the tattoo. Then I took the tootsie to the vet, which she hated. Jesse and I made dinner, and then went to get ice cream from Franklin Fountain and see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in Franklin Square Park.

Saturday morning we headed up a work day at the new Circle Thrift, and got a lot of work done in a short amount of time. We went home, relaxed, finished the rocking chair we have been working on, and then met up with a crew at FDR Park for an evening picnic and hang out. The evening ended with Franklin Fountain..... again! It does not get much better than that.

Sunday was spent enjoying the storm, making yogurt, making tomato sauce, jarring the tomato sauce, watching olympics, watching Fargo (which Jesse had never seen), repotting house plants, and going to PM. Jarring went really well. Thank God for Jesse, I have no patience and would not get anything done without him.

I need to post pictures of several of the above mentioned, which I will try and do tomorrow. The weather was so amazing all weekend, and I am loving today's overcast 75 degree weather. Fall will be here before we know it, and I cannot wait.

"Life Is Beautiful"

2008-07-30T09:59:00.000-07:00

I have been listening to Ryan Adams on the way to work in the morning, and boy oh boy what a wonderful way to start the day. He is so rockin', but so peaceful. I love this song so much....

"Life Is Beautiful"

You plant a rose
And if the rose comes up
You're thankful to God
And when it doesn't you cuss him
You raise a child
And when the child grows up
You got to learn to let go
If you can't learn to love him
But, oh, what a beautiful thing when you sing
Hear all them bells ringing out in the street
Hammer strikes the metal and it makes me believe
'Cause if I don't believe in love
Then I don't believe in you
And I do

Now I'm not saying only bad news comes
For the people who want it
But you gotta play that music for who's listening
You got to have someone you wanna sing it to
Oh, what a beautiful thing when you sing
Hear all them bells ringing out in the street
Blue sky cracking and it makes me believe
Oh, hear all them bells ringing out in the street
Hammer strikes the metal and it makes me believe
'Cause if I don't believe in love
Then I don't believe in you
And I do

Close my eyes, see the glorious sunset
Through the windows of a store and I want it
Anyway, if I ever felt haunted
You were there for me
These angry people who are waiting to judge you
Have their own judgment that they'll have live up to
Open your mouth
And if nothing come through
Remember
You're the one that sings
And it's a gift
And life's a beautiful thing
Oh, don't waste it doll
You build a house and if the house comes up
You gotta work on that house
If you want to make it your home
'Cause everything inside that's not something you own
Is what you're taking with you
On the day that you go
And oh, what a beautiful world when we sing
Hear all them bells ringing out in the street
Hammer strikes the metal and it makes me believe
Hear all them bells ringing out in the street
Oh, hammer strikes the metal and it makes me believe
'Cause if I don't believe in love
Then I don't believe in you
And I do

Cannot think of a title....

2008-07-30T09:31:00.000-07:00

Jesse makes seitan from scratch, which he did on Sunday night, and then made chicken fried seitan for dinner last night! When I got home I made the mashed potatoes and a vegetarian white gravy, and Jesse finished by making the zucchini. It was an amazing dinner!

Here is the quilt that I made, which I gave to Miranda at her baby shower on Saturday. I called it the one week quilt, I made it last week, the week from hell. It is not very good for me to work on projects like this during mental breakdowns, but I did it anyway.

I just email Luke White about getting tattooed on Friday. It has been a long time since I have had any work done, so I am super excited and super nervous. I am getting a dad tattoo, in the ditch of my right leg. If anything is worth going through that much pain, it is a dad tattoo.

Feeling Better

2008-07-28T09:08:00.000-07:00

It has been a week since my last post, and boy what a week. It sucked to say the least. I was pmsing, depressed, curled up in pain from a bladder infection, and feeling like I could not catch a break. When I get in those funks, it is literally impossible for me to get out them, I just have to wait it out. What makes it even worse is that Jesse has to deal with it, which he does very graciously by the way. It is always hormone related, which is hard, because there is nothing I can do about it. As J-Mal would say, life man. Anyway, I woke up Sunday morning feel 100% better.

It is almost August, and we have not gone to a water park yet. Maybe this weekend? Who is in?

Weekend Fun

2008-07-21T09:10:00.000-07:00

We spent the weekend doing this.....

And this......

Saturday we relaxed, and did things we have been wanting to do for a while. I did some cooking and worked on my quilt, while Jesse worked on the scooter that has not been running. As you can see, he had to do this in the house. After looking at some diagrams he figured out what was broken, took the part he needed out of the working scooter, and put it in the broken scooter to make sure that was the problem. Sure enough, the broken one started right up! He is so good at figuring things out, it blows my mind. So now we just need to order the part, and we will have two working scooters again.
Sunday we went to the shore with Bess and Matt. It was Matt's birthday, and we had a lot of fun. Unfortunately we returned home to find Matt's car, with a slashed tire. Happy Birthday! I do not understand pointless shit like that, it makes me really mad at the world.

Do not let it go to waste

2008-07-18T09:17:00.000-07:00

I am a big girl, I figured out how to post pictures.....

Dessert from last night: chocolate beet cake! Do not be afraid, you cannot even taste the beets. They add fiber, and make it super m-o-i-s-t.

These yellow squash were the first things I got to pick from my garden!

This was last night's dinner. It does not look so appealing, but it was fun and delicious. Sometimes I have random things that are about to go bad, and in times like that I must get creative. First I made fresh pico de gallo with tomatoes that were getting soft. We had this head of bib lettuce that needed to get used, so I decided to make wraps with them. The last thing that needed to get used was some cabbage, so I sauteed it and added salt, pepper, and cumin. That plate of mush that you see is the cabbage, refried beans, and brown rice. Put all of that, some of the pico de gallo, and sour cream into a piece of lettuce, and you have yourself a wrap. I would also like to mention the mermaid bottle opener that you see on the table. My dear friend Lindsay sent that gift to me in the mail randomly a while ago, and it is so cute.

Thank You

2008-07-17T09:30:00.001-07:00

Lana! If I knew how to make a link, I would link her blog right now. She made mine super cute.

Exciting x's 5

2008-07-15T08:58:00.000-07:00

I have a few things that I am pretty pumped on right now.....

1. The quilt that I am starting for my soon to be niece or nephew. Jesse's brother and his wife Miranda are expecting their first child, and the sex is a surprise. The baby shower is next Saturday, and I am hoping to get it done by then. When I say I am starting it, I mean I have not started yet, but I am going to as soon as I am done with this post.

2. I am going to be Miranda's doula. This will be my second birth, and I imagine it is going to be amazing to help someone that I am close with. If you or anyone you know is pregnant, let me know, because I really want to do more births.

3. I am going to start canning! Lana and I were blown away by how big my four tomato plants were the other day, and there is going to be way more tomatoes than I know what to do with. So, I am going to make tomato sauce, salsa, and anything else that I can think of with all those tomatoes, and then can it for the winter months! Other than getting jars, I have to buy a pressure canner...... they are not cheap, but I think I will make back my money in one season.

4. Mallory is back in town!

5. Bess is back from what seemed like the longest vacation ever.

Screwdriver

2008-07-13T14:43:00.000-07:00

Earlier today I was tightening a curtain rod with a phillip's head. Seeing as how a curtain rod is almost beyond my reach, I was on my tip toes and struggling. As I was finishing, I dropped the screwdriver, and on its way down it stabbed me right in the middle of my forehead. Now there is a big bump, and a cut that is the shape of a star. Jesse got a good laugh out of it.

Number Two

2008-07-11T05:51:00.001-07:00

So, how do I "get friends" on this thing? When I go to other blogs, they have a list of links to their friend's blogs. Help please.

Jesse and I joined a CSA this year, which has been absolutely amazing. We pick up fruit and veggies every other Thursday, and I anticipate it like a child anticipates going to Disneyland. Yesterday we got romaine lettuce, bib lettuce, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, beets, onions, zucchini, squash, cucumbers, and cherries.

For dinner last night we had mexican oven zucchini fries, and spaghetti with a hearty sauce. I took a jar of pasta sauce, and added some fresh chopped tomatoes, tvp, veggie stock, sauteed beet greens, and more spices, then put it on whole wheat spaghetti. For the fries I just cut the zucchini into strips, tossed them with olive oil, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper, then baked them at 450 for about 20 min.

Cooking makes me really happy. Especially cooking with locally grown, organic, fresh, beautiful things. Maybe I will continue to write about our dinners.

Number One

2008-07-09T11:38:00.001-07:00

I guess I just started a blog.