Merry Christmas, Mr. Smith.

We all had a wonderful Christmas - Smiths, pups, and families alike.

But Mr. Smith loved his Christmas so much, he shared it with the Facebook world. :)


I so enjoy making him happy. :)

Fabulous Friday: Merry Christmas to all.

Christmas Eve. Wow.

I honestly cannot believe how this day crept up on me the way it did. At the risk of sounding Scrooge-y, it doesn't feel like Christmas this year.

I don't know if it has something to do with me being at work today {yes... I am} or barely seeing our family or just that there has been so much other stuff going on that we haven't had a moment to stop and take it all in...

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I slept on our mattress last night (sans sheets and all) with just a throw blanket over me because I started washing our mattress cover at 8pm and our dryer is on it's last leg... bad choice.*

Whatever it is, this is the weirdest Christmas I can remember.

So... this morning I stopped at Starbucks on my way to the office in an effort to get in the Christmas spirit with a little red cup magic in the form of a Caramel Brulee Latte. {My first one, magnificent! Why did I wait so long to jump on the bandwagon?}


It hasn't kicked in yet, but hopefully soon it will and I will be a happy Christmas fool like the rest of the world. Maybe that will happen when I see my parents and my sister tonight and start Christmas traditions with my new husband. We shall see.

Maybe sparkly/vintage Christmas** pictures will help too. Mmm, yes, they most certainly will.

from miss.bailey's flickr

__________

*Apologies if this seems a little bit Debbie-Downer on your Christmas spirits. I usually feel better after writing things out, so if nothing else, you're helping me work through the funk. Thank you for that.

**And... yes, as a matter of fact, it does make me just a wee bit happier to make all the festive and Christmas words red. Hope you enjoy it, too.

Rules of the Road.

Dear Drivers of the World:

There are a few rules of the road. Most of them are defined in that manual you pick up at the DMV when you're 15 years old.

The others you learn as you go. There are a few of those "learn-as-you-go" ones that I deem very important. Here is one.

When you are driving 65mph on a parkway with a windshield resembling this:

source

please do not

a) Talk on your cell phone.
b) Play with your hair.
c) Come into my lane... especially when the lane on the other side of me is full of semi-truck.

I'd greatly appreciate if you follow this rule.

Especially if you're a blonde girl. Driving a Silver Jetta. Today. On Briley Parkway. Around 3:30pm.

Thankyouverymuch,
Mrs. Smith

Menu Monday.

Can you believe it's Christmas week? WOW!!! It totally crept up on me, and to be honest, I don't know how it is truly Christmas week. But let's embrace it and eat lots of yummy food!!

Monday: Mr. Smith is going to see Avatar with a friend, so probably Movie Popcorn for dinner. (So healthy I know.) Meanwhile, I'm having dinner with a friend as well, but somewhere that serves real food. :)

Tuesday: Spaghetti! No recipe here. We are using Trader Joe's Low-Fat Marinara and organic diced tomatoes... then we add spices as we like. Lots of basil, and we have a penchant for crushed red pepper that sometimes verges on going overboard. We are using Trader Joe's Organic Whole Wheat Spaghetti noodles this time. Salad here too.

Wednesday: Leftover spaghetti. Yum!

Thursday: Christmas Eve dinner with family.

Friday: Christmas Day dinner with family.

Saturday: Tomato Soup and Gruyere with Caramelized Onion Paninis. The soup is a Giada recipe, discovered and first shared by Vineyard Vogue. The paninis are from PaniniHappy.com.

Sunday: My parents will be in town, so we'll probably go out with them.


And here are the recipes. My notes for healthier substitutes are in italics.

Hearty Tomato Soup with Lemon & Rosemary
Gia*da's Kitchen, Gia*da DeLau*rentiis
Makes 6-8 servings



Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter (I'll use 1tbsp to cut back the fat.)
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 15-ounce can cannellini (white) beans, drained and rinsed
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
3 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of fresh rosemary, plus 1 teaspoon, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup creme fraiche (And here, FF Sour Cream to cut back a little fat but keep the consistency.)
Zest of one lemon

Directions:
In a large soup pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrots, and garlic and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 4 minutes. Add the beans, tomatoes, broth, bay leaf, 1 teaspoon rosemary, and red pepper flakes. Bring the soup to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, covered.

Puree the soup in a blender in batches, being careful to remove and discard the bay leaf. Return the soup to a soup pot and keep warm over low heat. Season with salt and pepper.
In a medium bowl fold in the lemon zest and the remaining teaspoon of rosemary to 2/3 cup creme fraiche.

To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and dollop each bowl with the lemon rosemary creme fraiche. Serve immediately.

Gruyère with Caramelized Onions Panini
Adapted from ‘wichcraft: Craft a sandwich into a meal–and a meal into a sandwich

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (We'll use 1/2 that.)
  
• 4 medium yellow onions, halved and cut lengthwise into 1/8″ slices
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, or 1 tablespoon dried Sicilian oregano
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 oz. Gruyere cheese, grated
• 8 slices rye bread

DIRECTIONS:

In a skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and onions and stir vigorously to avoid scorching. Add the oregano and season with salt and pepper. Continue stirring until the onions have a deep brown color. Reduce the heat and continue to cook until the onions are soft, 30 to 45 minutes. Set aside.*

Preheat the panini grill to medium-high heat (375°F).

For each sandwich: Place 1/4 of the cheese on a slice of bread. Follow with a generous amount of onions. Close the sandwich and place on the panini grill. Grill for 4-5 minutes until the cheese is completely melted and the bread is toasted with golden grill marks. Serve immediately and enjoy!

* Either use the onions immediately to make the panini or refrigerate them for up to 1 week.

Fabulous Friday: Family Christmas

It's a short fab Friday post because I'm heading out of town to see family for Christmas!! Good food, some presents, and of course, crazy family yelling instructions for deviled eggs and angry about their lack of skill at whatever card game is played.

But you know what - it's all in good fun, right? They're family so enjoy the good and laugh at the bad.

At least I'm not a part of this family.

They're crazy. But that show is addictive.

Happy beginning of the Christmas week!

Empire State of Mind.

There are few things in life that blow me away.
{Any of my co-workers or friends would know this: I have incredibly high expectations. For myself and others - at least I spread it around.}

But this song. Blows me away. Every single time. I know it's nothing very new, but for whatever reason I've been obsessed.

Skip through the first minute or two...

online shopping goodies.

I've become recently obsessed with online shopping. While it's always been a love of mine, I'm finding that it's easier and easier to buy, um, everything online. And by everything, I mean everything {except my groceries}. I rarely even have to go to Target any more. I find better deals on most everything, I don't have to drive {which I both despise and am rather terrible at}, and I don't buy other things I see on impulse {the $7 DVD industry has lost it's best customer}.

All this fluff, and of course you're thinking, "duh, we all like to shop." Point taken.

The point of this is to make sure you know about all the amazing places that help me find these deals, and in some cases, pay me to shop in my PJs. Happiness.


First and newest: Groupon. Holy crap! Mr. Smith and I may never go to another restaurant again without a coupon or Groupon! {We've recently scored a $50 GC to Miel Restaurant for $25, a $25 GC to Zumi Sushi for $10, and I'm fighting myself not to buy this $100 mani-pedi from Cashmere Salon & Spa for $45.} These are NOT just in Nashville - they have it in cities across the country so go sign up for the daily email alerts and see what you can score!


Another one similar to Groupon: Half-Off Depot. Also across the country. Half-off gift cards to restaurants, salons, carpet cleaning, and more. The advantage to this one is that you have more time. Groupon is one-day only deals that are unlimited, but Half-Off Depot has a set number that are on sale till they're gone. I got some Cheeseburger Charley's deals here.

Ebates!! OMG I LOVE SOME EBATES!!! All you do is shop at your regular stores, get the coupon codes practically fed to you on a silver spoon, then get something like 1% up to 15% even back in CASH on your order! If you buy ANYTHING online, you MUST use Ebates!! Go here to sign up! **Edited to add: Sign up by 12/31 and make a $20 purchase - get $5 credit!

These next ones are all similar. Designer apparel, accessories, and home decor items at major discounts for 2-3 days at a time. They run the gamut. If you have your eye on any designer from American Apparel to Juicy Couture, Michael Kors to Halston, you'll be in luck if you are a member of one of these.

All are by invitation, but if you click the links below, I can hook you up. :)

Rue La La - My Personal Favorite
Edited to add: Get a $10 credit if you open your account by 12/24!

Haute Look

Gilt Groupe

Ideeli

One King's Lane - For all home decor and gifts.
Email me for the invite to this one. mrssmith909 {at} gmail {dot} com

And if you still live in the non-Alice world, I must stop being your friend save you from yourself. The company is like an online Target - get everything you need. They named themselves after the Brady Bunch Alice - that one who was always there to help with everything and make sure the Bradys would...

Alice can...

-Manage all of your Home Essentials

-Find the Best Prices Online
-Get Free Shipping, Always!
-Eliminate Emergency Store Trips
-Get Automatic Coupons on 1000’s of Products

...and you'll always get the best parking spot since you'll be parked at home. :)

Ok - get to shopping!

PS - None of these companies have any idea I'm singing their praises. I just want to share the shopping goodness with you! :)

Menu Monday.

In case you've noticed, I took a little blogging break. In fact, I took a computer break. I haven't been in my office at home since Thursday. But - a girl's gotta eat, so I'm back in the game for Menu Monday!

The Smiths have a busy week ahead, so there won't be too much elaborate cooking. Easy's good anyway, though, right?

Monday: Mr. Smith's Mom is coming to visit for the night. She lives in Denver, so we're so excited to have her here. I'm thinking we'll hit up Cheesecake Factory or CPK, maybe?

Tuesday: Another dinner out with the MIL. Oh happiness.

Wednesday: Brunch Casserole. A slow cooker recipe from Off the Shelf Cooking. 6pts/svg

Thursday: Mr. Smith works till 10. We shall scrounge for food. Or leftover brunch casserole.

Friday: I'm out of town for a family Christmas, but Mr. Smith is working and eating leftovers.

Saturday: I'm thinking dinner out. We have a PF Chang's gift card (Thanks, Mom!) that's burning a hole in the old pocket.

Sunday: Quesadillas and Mexican rice. Mr. Smith is working late, so I'll throw this together quickly. The quesadillas are just refried beans, chicken, onions, peppers, shredded cheese and some green chiles in wheat tortillas. The Mexican rice is pre-packaged something.

Sorry guys - not much this week. Maybe I'll bake something? Doubt it. I like to cook, not bake. But if I do - I'll be sure to share.

Have a great pre-Christmas week!

Brunch Casserole
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:
8-10oz pkg breakfast links
10.75oz can condensed cream of potato soup
2/3c. milk
2tsp Worcestershire or steak sauce
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
28oz pkg loose-pack frozen diced hash brown potatoes with onions and peppers, thawed
10oz pkg frozen broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots in cheese sauce, thawed
1/2c. shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Directions:
1. Lightly coat a 3-1/2 or 4-quart slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. Brown sausage according to package directions; cool slightly. Slice links into 1/2-inch pieces; set aside.
2. In the slow cooker combine soup, milk, Worcestershire sauce, and pepper. Stir in potatoes, vegetables with cheese sauce, and sausage pieces.
3. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 5-6 hours or on high-heat setting for 2-1/2 to 3 hours. Turn off cooker. Sprinkle mixture with cheddar cheese. Cover and let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

achilles tendonitis.

source.

that's what i have. achilles tendonitis. that's why i got all whiny expressed frustrations here and here and why i couldn't finish running this.

i went to do doctor last week, and she made the diagnosis. i'm really glad i went because now i can let it heal and i have an actual cause. i had thought maybe i just have bad genes i had done something wrong, but really i did everything right {according to my doctor, who i love btw}... it just happened.

so now i have some anti-inflammatory medicine. i'm off all exercise for another week. but it's feeling better. i haven't felt the pain since sunday. wow! 4 days without pain! that is fabulous.

i'm so looking forward to december 19 - the day i start running again. wahoo!