I am thankful for these people here.

These past few months have been crazy what with losing a job, starting a business, and enough personal friend drama to star in my own Spelling-esque night time soap opera.

This weekend we went camping and it really brought into focus what is true and imortant in my life.  I can tell you, for me, it isn’t about being invited, included, or “in”.  For me, right now, it is all about being and giving love… about respect and communication…. about truth and honesty…. about wading into the cold cold water and finding joy.

Hi. I have missed you.

Go look at me!!

I want to bake for you. I want to bake whatever  strikes your fancy.  If you feel a need for cookies or brownies or cake or pie or fudge or candy…. try me. I can work with any food intolerance or allergy as well as making tasty vegan treats!

please.

So… I have been invited to join a guest blogging site. I am very flattered yet confused. I am in the company of women who write. Women that write AND use proper grammar and punctuation. How in the hell did that happen? In person I can be amusing…funny at times with tiny glimpses of wit here and there but on here I do not shine.

I have no writing style. I am not an ‘expert’ on anything nor do I think I can make your life better just by reading some silly (usually dark) sloppily constructed and poorly written paragraphs (if you could even call them that more like long winded run on sentences).  I have no original point of view. How many dark, occasionally funny, often snarky mama blogs are out there? How many posts about baking and depression can you all read?

I don’t think I will decline because it is such an  honor to be included. I will ask to have the woman who invited me to join the blogs head examined. She knows I love her but she is crazy pants crazy.

Other than that I am still working on the tasting idea. We have to load up the punganic (a mix of punk lifestyle and Oregon pseudohippie lifestyle ((yeah I made it up)) minivan and drive to Vegas in June. I am trying to throw as much extra cash as I can get my hands on into that so I think it will be a summer dessert tasting. That may work more to my advantage as I will have all that awesome produce at my fingertips. I will keep you all posted.

Lastly I went to FaceBook with my online bake sale custom order idea and got a few orders that way. It was exciting and fun and I have a full day of baking ahead of me. I really love the feeling of throwing it out there that I need to sell X amount of goods and people are willing to take a chance on you. I am amazed by my friends willingness to support my dream (and eat my sweets)

That is all.

So….. I was thinking of having a tasting for potential clients. Thoughts?

Ok first off this week there has been a little wagon falling…. This weekend we ate out a lot (stop being dirty)

Mon- leftovers

Tue- out MNM picked up new seasons order while I had a autoimmune freak out.

Wed- Honey mustard chicken, harvest grains with parm, roasted beets, salad.

Thurs- Pizza while we watched the robot and the princess.

Fri- Barley Risotto with Kale

Sat- Special love menu…. Steak, shrimp, broccoli, crisp roasted potatoes and brownie sundaes for dessert.

Sun- leftovers

Mon- Revise menu make online order.

Now I have another question. What do you eat for breakfast and lunch?

P.S.

I love you.

Happy Valentines Day:)

So….. Thank you all for helping out with the food crisis. I have done a few of your suggestions. I looked through my freezers and pantry and came up with meals I could just make or only needed a few ingredients. I also placed my first online order to NS and that was awesome!! Thank you Adina (and Gary) for the suggestion. This has been our menu this week…

Mon – out (order placing day)

Tue- faux pho

Wed- Cuban style black beans, brown rice, and sauteed kale.

Thurs – burrito night with leftover beans.

Fri- making rice and salad as we are going to a friend’s for dinner.

I will try to post next week’s menu after the week is up. This is helping me to get out of our rut and hopefully you will respond with your menus yay

On another note I have been toying with the idea of opening my own little bake sale business. A few friends have hired me to make treats for them and I am hoping I can grow out of word of mouth. I also was hired by our photog friend Amy to make some custom knits for her. It is nice to feel like I actually have something to contribute. Now is when I ask you for a couple more favors…..

#1 If you need any fancy (or not so fancy) baked goods keep me in mind.

B- I need help with a name. I like either “Treats” or “Bake Sale”. Thoughts?

I know what a strange title for me. As you all know I love food (and it shows!) My big issue is planning out food. We here at the monkey house have a dining out problem. We spend WAY TOO MUCH eating out and I would love to say that all that dining out is taking place and super healthy places but, truth be told, it is not.  So I am asking a favor from all of my 2 readers…

What is on your menu this week? What are your menu planning strategies? Would you be willing to do a weekly/biweekly menu post on your blog? What are your grocery shopping or best money saving tips?  Help a sister out!

So my sweet lady friend Ms. Wafols is interviewing me…. sort of. She cho cho chose me to answer some questions and being the good sport that I am I am going to answer them all. Watch me go…

Questions

1. Are you now or have you ever been psychic? No. How do you know? I don’t believe in “psychic”.
2. Would you rather die heroically or cowardly? Heroically (In a grand manner If I am doing the hero thing anyway)
3. How hard would it be for you to live somewhere without fresh indoor water? Electricity? Plumbing? Water..very hard. I am a baker and freah clean water is very important. Electricity..maybe I could survive. I can read and know how to cook on a fire. Plumbing…I MIGHT be able to live without it but I wouldn’t want to.
4. What is your primary cellphone ringtone? Ok I am a music dork and I have three Magnolia Mountain by Ryan Adams and the theme song from Six Feet Under for friends and I will Possess Your Heart for MNM.
5. Are you more witty or snarky? I didn’t know how to answer thins so I asked a friend and she said it depends on when you get me.. Monday (morning especially) snarky come Thursday witty.
6. Most extreme personal change or changes you’ve ever made? For me it was becoming a mother. I was a step mother starting at 18 but he didn’t live with us until I was 21. I never thought I would be good at it (and the jury is still out about that) but more surprising is I never thought I would love it as much as I do.
7. Favorite city you’ve lived in or want to live in? Portland. Hands down. I felt like I belonged here as soon as I got here.
8. Has your life up til now been more blameless or messy? Moving forward from here, which one would you choose? Messy. I would choose to have it go on being messy. I want to live and that means getting your hands dirty.
9. Worst kiss (or kiss-like experience)? I have had amazing kiss luck in my life. If pressed I would say probably Jr High truth or dare. All tongue. GRODY.
10. You HAVE to pick a religion to practice. Evangelical Christian, Zoroastrian, Jainist or Scientologist? (and why?)  If I HAD to pick I would go with Jainist because of their belief that anyone can be supreme. Kind of like how they had that ‘anyone can cook’ theme running through the movie Ratatouille.
11. The person you are romantically involved with announces they are getting a sex change. Would it change your feelings for them? No. I love who MNM is not what gender MNM is.
12. Meat helmet or thigh-high golden boots with large wings attached to them? This is sooo funny…. I actually have thigh-high golden boots with large wings attached to them! How odd.
13. How many times have you been what you consider REALLY in love? Do you still love those people/that person? Aside from my children… so many times. I fall in love all the time. I love my first love, my first husband (as hard as that is to admit but he did help me make the most beautiful girl ever ((argue I dare you)), my husband, any number of friends who have deeply and profoundly touched my life. I don’t throw the word around so if you have heard it from me it is true.
14. When you die, what do you think happens? Do you hope to be disappointed or somehow wrong about that? I think my brain and heart stop functioning. I think I stop working. I hope that I have lived fully before my time is up.
15. Do you know your ethnic ancestry? Is that interesting or otherwise important to you? I am learning more and more about mine. It is fascinating. My great great grandmother is documented in the Trail of Tears.
    

I hope that this is good for you Rebekah. It was fun.