Haircuts and Ham & Cheese

Happy Monday, friends!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Sometimes Mondays are hard, so Sadie and I started with a doughnut.  Usually, we celebrate Doughnut Day on Fridays, but since we’re going on a big trip later this week, we went ahead and celebrated today.

Sadie chose a strawberry frosted doughnut.  Just coffee for me, thanks.

Today I was busy running errands, getting a few things done before our trip.  One item on the agenda: haircut for Sadie.

We go to Clipper Doodles, a child-friendly “salon.”  Sadie loved sitting in the race-car chair and wearing the “superhero cape.”  Sadie was soooooo good for her haircut.  She did exactly what the hairdresser asked her to do, and she was super-proud of her new ‘do.  Nothing drastic… just shortened up a bit.

Tonight, we had a simple dinner that I usually reserve for tailgating or parties: Baked Ham and Cheese Rolls.  These are so delicious.  They are perfect for a party or for a simple dinner.  (I have even made them for breakfast!) 

You could make many varieties of these, and I actually like adding arugula and sliced tomatoes sometimes, but tonight I went with the super-simple version: honey ham, muenster cheese, and soft potato rolls. 

Assemble the sandwiches and place in a baking dish.  Then comes the best part… the topping.  THIS is what makes these mini-sandwiches awesome. 

Mix: hot melted butter, yellow mustard, poppy seeds, and dried onion flakes.  I don’t use exact measurements, but tonight I would estimate that I used 1/2 stick of butter, 1 tsp of mustard, 1/2 tsp of poppy seeds, and 1 tsp of onion flakes. 

Pour over the rolls and bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese melts and sandwiches are toasted.  Mmmmmmmm… delicious!

Okay, now the Bachelorette finale is calling my name.  It’s the final rose tonight!

New Class Celebration and Cinco de May “Shame?”

Happy Cinco de Mayo!  Did you go out for fun Mexican fare (i.e. Margaritas and Coronas)? 

Tonight was a special night for me because I had a new class celebration for my new Zumba class!  Yay!  It was such a fun class!  I’m already excited about next week.  Can you believe I forgot to take any pictures???  Whoops!  However, I think it MIGHT be showing up on TV soon!  Our local station came out to film a little and are possibly going to do a story on it!  Yikes!  I am nervous about seeing myself on camera teaching Zumba! 

After class, I thought about what I might have for Cinco de Mayo dinner.  I was on my own because hubby and Sadie were having dinner with his parents.  So I decided on…

umm…yes… I went to Taco Bell on Cinco de Mayo.  Those of you who know me well or have been reading for a while know that I have a special relationship with Taco Bell.  I don’t eat a lot of fast food, but I have a special place in my heart for TB’s Fresco tacos. 

I would say it was my Cinco de Mayo shame… but I am just going to celebrate it.  Ole!

So today was a great day… but it is also bittersweet.  Many of you know that I lost my two wonderful grandparents this spring.  Today would have been their 66th wedding anniversary. 

 

Memama and Grindaddy with Sadie, one year ago

Anniversary Cake, one year ago

Several times today, I’ve thought back to this time last year when we celebrated their 65th anniversary.  I can celebrate the fact that they are together now.  But today, I am missing them both so much. 

Homemade Veggie Cream Cheese Mix-Up

Good morning, friends, and happy Tuesday!  It looks like it is going to be another beautiful day!

I’ve got a quick little recipe to share.  Actually, it’s so simple, I don’t know if you can really call this a recipe.  Let’s call it a “Mix-Up.”

I’ve always loved bagels and cream cheese.  In recent years, they have come out with all kinds of cool cream cheese flavors.  My personal favorite is Veggie Cream Cheese.  It’s got the best flavor and is wonderful on top of “Everything Bagels.”

This morning, I had one bagel left in the bag, and I was really craving some veggie cream cheese, but of course, I only had plain.  Boo.  But then I thought, how hard can this be???  And I created this “Mix-Up” in under 5 minutes. 

Veggie Cream Cheese Mix-Up

Ingredients:

1/2 block of light cream cheese

1 1/2 tbsp finely chopped yellow onion

1 1/2 Tbsp chopped cucumber

2 baby carrots, shredded

2 Tbsp chopped tomato

sprinkle of dill and parsley (I used dried, but of course fresh would be even better)

Prep:

Mix it all up and spread over your bagel!  Enjoy!

 

Hope you all have a fabulous day!  Oh, and the hubby is much better!  Now I am just praying that the rest of the household stays well! 

And the Breakfasts Continue... a Light Breakfast Burrito!

So, if you have been reading my posts recently, you know that I am really into breakfast.  One of my biggest pleasures used to be stopping at the McDonald's or Burger King drive thru in the morning on the way to work.  The lady that worked the BK drive thru even learned my name and how I took my coffee.  If I was running late, she would say, "Girl!  Where you been?"  At the time, I thought, "Wow-- this is wonderful service!"  However, NOW I look back and think, "What was I thinking???"  The average fast food breakfast is loaded with fat and calories-- sometimes it has more than an extra value meal LUNCH!  That is sad.  Even sadder, I still fight this battle every day.  I still want to stop off for a Bacon, Egg, and Cheese biscuit sometimes.  Sometimes, I do it.  However, I have found that with a few easy recipes and about 5 extra minutes in the morning, I can make my own easy, healthful breakfast that will "fool" my brain into thinking it's been through the drive thru.

This morning, I made a simple breakfast burrito.  I used a tortilla that had about 120 calories and 11 grams of fiber.  (Whoa-- that is a lot-- but it will help you to feel satisfied!)  I scrambled 1 egg plus 1 egg white with a dash of skim milk, salt, and pepper.  As that was scrambling, I warmed my tortilla in the microwave.  Then I spread the egg on the tortilla.  Over the egg, I added a tiny bit (about 1/8 of a cup) of reduced fat colby and cheddar cheese.  I crumbled a piece of turkey bacon over that.   (I cooked bacon 2 days ago, so I had leftovers.) Then I added about 1/2 tsp of chopped green onion and a few drops of Frank's cayenne pepper sauce.  I rolled it up and voila!  A breakfast burrito with a little color, a little kick, and a lot of fiber and flavor.