Martha Monday - what's for dinner?

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Sadly, I don't have any photos this week, but I made a really, really good dinner!! A friend at work gave me the recipe. It's very simple and healthy. Oh so nice! It has veggies in it, so I wasn't sure how Saint would take it, but he gave it a thumbs up. Though put cajun sausage in anything and he will usually like it.

Chicken & Sausage Rice Dinner

Andouille Sausage
Chicken, boneless
Peppers (red, yellow, green)
Hot peppers (I didn't use these)
Mushrooms
Teriyaki Sauce
Jasmine Rice

In one pan, I put the chicken covered the pan and cooked it for about seven minutes.
In another pan, I put the sausage for about four minutes, then added the peppers, mushrooms and some water. Just enough to give it some juice.
In a pot, I cooked the jasmine rice.

Once all of it is done, I poured the chicken in with the sausage mixture and then poured teriyaki sauce in and mixed. I did put the teriyaki sauce on the table in case more was needed.

As an after thought, I could have made a salad, but we had leftover french bread to eat with it.

It was so good. So much flavor and a kick of spice. (imagine if I used the hot peppers) I am not usually a big fan of rice, but the jasmine rice was good - it was sticky and has a slight sweet flavor to it.

Saint asked for cayenne pepper put in with the jasmine rice which I can definitely do next time. Heck, I even have some in the cupboard - no need to go shopping.


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Martha Monday - inspiration journal

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I have been paroosing through the donna downey inspiration wednesday history posts, practicing with the techniques and materials that I learned in her classes.

A couple of weeks ago, I broke down and purchased an inspirational journal.

I was craving painting and using something messy.
Acrylic paint?
Yes please.
Crackle paste?
Oh yeah!

Donna is correct. In North Carolina, crackle paste takes 24-48 hours to dry. Here? Takes less than 2 hours, but I gave it 4 hours for all the good crackling.

Post, crackle paint, I did not like the green.
So I painted over it.
With pink.
And then added a thin ribbon attached to a thick jean ribbon.

And then stamped a quote (one of her stamps)
with orange stazon and green distressing pad onto a tag.

I like it better and it was fun.

Page 1; inspiration journal.



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Martha Monday - summer cupcakes

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This week I had a craving for cupcakes.

Usually anything baked ends up being lemon flavored. That is just what I like, but since I did that with the summer cake, I thought I'd try a new flavor.

Strawberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese frosting

(cream cheese frosting is Saint's favorite)


With mom's advice, I used the ice cream scooper to scoop the cake batter into the cupcake papers. Apparently this is good for keeping them all the same size. If, that is, you are not me. I don't have luck like this.


Then using a small spatula, use that to scrape the excess batter off the ice cream scooper.

If you ask me, you use your finger to clean the sides of the cupcake pan.




Oh, yummy. These smelled SO GOOD!
After I popped them out of the pan, cover them in oh so wonderful frosting.
See how cute my donna downey shirt is? She signed it at the classes I took!


I top it pretty high. Wasn't sure I would use all the frosting.


But yes, I did. Damn.



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Martha Monday - the craft room make-over

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I do not have very many "before" pictures of my craft room simply because a) I rarely ever went in there and if I did it was to stow an item or eight million and/or b) it is really really messy. Not photo worthy.

Here is just a glimpse of some of the way I had my stuff "organized."


AFTER:
Went to IKEA
FOUR TIMES
I went to IKEA four times!!
On the last time I actually purchased furniture.
But that wasn't the end of it.
I went back one more time because out of the three pieces of furniture, one was missing a piece and one was broken.


I bought a cube with 12 places for storage.
I bought a corner desk and the elongated matching desk.


Then I went to Walmart and purchased six extra large square canvas baskets.
This combined with the other smaller canvas baskets, mixed with the baskets I already had should be more than enough to organize effectively.


It took 8 hours to put all this furniture together!!!
EIGHT HOURS!!


Now I couldn't just organize the craft room.
It became a full apartment overhaul.
In order to get everything in the craft room I had to move the table out to the patio, the bookshelf into the closet and then organize.


Which is actually great because then I had room for the papasan that I love. I have been holding on to that little treasure for a couple years. It's really the reading chair. So cozy for a long book.
AND
Should Saint decide to move in after his lease is up (ooh, crossing fingers), he will have space for a desk too.


As you can see, Tuesday was psyched to get her much loved window seat back. A prime spot on the desk. Though she and I both know that during serious crafting, that bed will be put on the floor. Not that she cares, she will simply lay on whatever - papers, pens, etc.


I love the colored cubes. Yet, I find myself trying to organize them so they look better. Ugh, the falls of a Type A personality.


I organized this room about five times before I finally felt it was good enough for a break. All my stuff just kept multiplying so there way always more to organize and go through. Crazy.
Tuesday again, checking out her new diggs.


Here are the final pics, after all the major papers, tools and crap where thrown out or organized into better systems.


Here is my desk. Chair has got to go. Any suggestions on a cool, comfy chair? This one is great, but as you can see there is not one but two pillows to help with comfort. It is a bit broken so when I sit in it, it falls back.


Check out the cool new Making Memories desktop carousel! It was on sale at Michael's craft stores. WOOT!


I did keep a couple of the plastic shelving units. The little one is so organized, I couldn't get rid of it. The two filing cabinets under the desk will have to be gone through and combined. I don't plan to keep the little plastic one that has apparently died on one of the moves.

Ahhh, papasan you and I have a date with an awesome book very, very soon.




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Martha Monday - summer cake

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Every summer I get a craving for this cool, refreshing cake. I honestly do not know what it's called. I got it from my mom. I call it Jello Cake. It is seriously the easiest thing you will ever make. AND it is SO good. When temperatures are deathly hot, it gives my mouth a break of cool goodness.

Ingredients: Favorite cake mix
favorite jello mix
whipped topping/cool whip

Make cake mix following directions on box

(Let me take a moment to thank my mother for giving me a hand mixer after I burned out two of them. It is so much easier to make with a hand mixer.)

Pour the cake batter into a cake pan size of your choice
Bake following directions on the box.

Let cake sit and cool.

When cake is cool, poke cake all over with holes.
I have this really cool hair pick that I have used (strictly for this cake and not for any other thing like hair) for years because it makes a lot of holes at once.

When cake is cool, make jello mix according to box directions.

Pour jello over cake and put in fridge to set.

After jello has set (give it hours), pour cool whip over cake.
Smooth as if cake icing.

Yummy!!
Serve and eat as wanted.

I love this cake because I can switch up the flavors as I want -
lemon cake with orange jello
strawberry cake with lemon jello
yellow cake with strawberry jello
You name it. I can mix it.


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Martha Monday - creating nothing

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photography, gardening, etc?
Do you love to just TRY and be inspired?
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all you need is the feeling to cultivate and share
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This week I worked nine days straight. Not a big deal, but tiring nonetheless and not so much energy for creating in my free time. Though I did however gain my first weekend off in quite some time. What normal people do every weekend, I do it seems a couple times a year. Though I tried to be inspired, it wasn't for lack of trying or ideas I was just too busy not doing anything to create.

I did, however, attempt to cultivate.

For dinner one night I made my favorite, Chicken in spaghetti sauce. This time I used the drumsticks that were currently in my freezer, though any cut of meat will do.

6 drumsticks
Can of spaghetti sauce
favorite pasta

vegetables (optional)
bread (optional)
wine (optional)

Put chicken in crock pot, pour sauce over it. Turn on high for one hour, leave on low for the next six hours.



For serving, make pasta according to directions. I usually go for fettuccine as it is my favorite consistency when it comes to pasta. Spoon crock pot mixture over pasta, side of vegetables (i like broccoli) and a side of bread. Of course, a little wine is good too. It is thick and the meat just falls off the bone.



The other thing I did was finally break down and visit Walmart to purchase the canvas baskets I have been craving for months now to organize my craft room.

I bought six of them. I got home and was playing around with organization, when in walked Saint, who immediately started shaking his head.

He has a much better idea to organize the room, so no canvas baskets. Says he will help me plan and fix it. I am very excited to get organized. He has such great ideas and is serious about helping. He is a finisher. Yeah!!

Also acquired at Walmart, a couple of wonderful Tupperware container specifically made for Sugar and Flour. They have these fabulous flip tops or pour spouts for easier cooking. Very excited because for the past three years my sugar and flour have sadly been housed in plastic zip lock baggies that spill constantly.

Here they are drying. I was waiting very impatiently for them to dry because I loathe the paste that is made when it's not fully dry.

How about you? What did you create this week?