Sunday Bliss.

Before we stepped out for our day, my Tot picked me yet another flower (MY HEART!)...

  

  We stopped at whole foods to grab an early lunch, and I got my usual Salmon & Tuna Nigiri, inside out rolls, & Izze (apple & Peach) pops.

  

  Tot opted for a Veggie Pizza (soooo delicious), and a horizon chocolate milk.

  

He wanted a dessert, so we bought a mini pumpkin cheesecake (Meh, I like pumpkin pie better.)

 

Cannolis! These were alright. My all time favorite, by far, is the tirramissu.With the exception from the tirramissu from Bucca Di beppo. Now THAT is something to get excited about haha.

 

 

At the check out lane I grabbed some trick or treat re-usable bags for .99 cents. Can't beat that! 

 

It was such a nice peaceful day. Fall is my FAVORITE season. I love sharing it with my kids.

My First Flower

From the love of my life....My son. We stepped out to go to "Grainpa's house", and he picked me a dandelion. I'll never forget this flower.

 

Pink Friday

Today, I had my baby's first year Dr.'s appt (I can't believe he's already a YEAR old =X). I was pretty happy that my mom was able to take some time to watch my 4 yr old. He always gets sad when the baby starts crying, and it turns into a *very* long day whenever we go to the doctors. It's like baby mama drama times a billion. After the appointment we stopped for snacks, and went to an all you can eat Sushi/Hibachi buffet. I felt like such a fat ass afterward, but it was worth it. I loved their Ika nigiri (which is one of my favorite), noodles, and stews galore. I forgot to take pictures of the food, but I inhaled it so quickly there was no time. I took one of a cute fur key chain they were selling behind the counter instead =). I couldn't decide between the pink or black, so I got hot pink to match my purse. I'm considering going back for the black one too haha.

 

  

We stopped at McDonald's, to grab some snacks before going to the Dr. We were going to grab wraps, but I remninded my mom that while we were hungry, that crap ends up making us feel horrible an hour later. She got an oatmeal, and I bought the much more healthier apple caramel sundae bwahaha. It must be something new? I had never seen it before. While waiting for our food, I caught a glimpse of this sign on the door.

 

It reads "This door is not an entrance, Go THATTA Way." Um.... Whicha way?? LOL. Only in the south people!.....only in the south =X.

 

The sundae was so good. Just enough to hold me off for dinner, and apples with caramel are my favorite! Its was very simple, just chunks of granny smith apples, a drizzle of caramel, all on top of vanilla ice cream. I never thought I'd love apples so much in my ice cream! It was surprisingly good, and why not? I love strawberries & bananas.... Apples should've been obvious.

The kids & I had a good time spending time with my mom. The kids were climbing on her, and playing rough with her lol. It's neat to see how much love my parents have for my kids. I really feel blessed to have them in my life<3 Happy Friday! Hopefully the weekend to follow is just as sweet.

Halloween Inspiration

I found this outfit, I'm thinking Minnie Mouse for Halloween!

Beginning To Coupon.

After watching a few "Extreme Couponing" shows, I was both intrigued, & disgusted. Intrigued, by how neat it is to save so much money, and disgusted by the fact that some people just hoard a bunch of crap they don't need. Sure its neat to get a bunch of stuff for free, but by buying junk they don't need, some really abuse the system. Making it harder for *real* families that are trying to use coupons (they put tighter restrictions.), is just not fair. Grabbing stuff for free costs *someone*... and if its not being put to good use, its just a lose/lose for everyone.

Negative feelings aside, I know the majority of people don't abuse the system, and there are definite perks! It really opened my eyes to how we spend our money in our own household. On the shows, I noticed that a lot of people buy overly processed foods with coupons, and that's not something I like to do. I wondered, is there a way to buy real foods? Produce, meats etc.... I'm not one to say that we only eat healthy 100% of the time, totally not true. I do occasionally buy instant soups, frozen pizzas, and sugary drinks, but its not by any means something we eat on a daily basis. I'd feel sick if I ate frozen microwave junk meals all of the time.

Reading couponing blogs, I did in fact find out that there are ways to save money on meats and produce, which is right up my alley. I also read suggestions about being open to new products etc., but I'd rather try to buy strictly items we already use. I have no use for cheap shampoo that I know will just sit there, and there's def. no point in purchasing a billion bottles, unless its going to be donated. That will be something to keep in mind as I get the hang of it.

Before I start writing about my couponing, I should mention...

As I read through a few couponing sites, I noticed people wrote about Walmart, Cosco, Krogers, but no one mentioned ethnic stores. It boggles me that no one realizes how much they could save just by going into an Asian mart, Mexican grocer, or an Indian one. But as I thought about it more, I can see why places like these could be intimidating. Its hard to buy from people who aren't speaking your language, and buy products you aren't familiar with. But what you don't know, is that a lot of the "gourmet" products you find at Whole Foods, can be easily found at these ethnic stores for almost 75% less than what you pay. Take fresh young coconut for instance, you find them at gourmet shops for over 3 dollars a piece, but at an Asian store you can find them for about a $1. Meats get very pricey, at Walmart, they cost about $10 a pkg (maybe a lb or so), and you can find Top Sirloin at a Mexican grocery for about $3 a lb. The only problem is they label the meats in spanish... but that's where I'm going to begin. Before I start blogging about my coupon adventure, I'm going to write posts on how to shop these ethnic stores, what brands to look for, and what goodies you can get that are fresher, and cheaper than what you're buying at the huge stores. I'm going to write about the names of foods to buy, cosmetics, and other household items you could find for less. Once I get those gems out of the way, I'll continue on my couponing journey. If anyone is interested in joining me let me know! It'd be neat to see who's saving, and maybe you can share some tips of your own!

Sneak Peek!

Here's a peek at one of the many pieces I'm putting together. I bet you can't guess what these pieces are made of! Not in a million years haha. These pictures are definitely raw, and in the beginning stages of what they will end up being.

  

   

    

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

Pork Giniling Recipe

Growing up in Chicago, I had any type of food right at my doorstep. Since moving to the south, ethnic food sucks in comparison. Even their top rated restaurants can't hold a candlestick to what was readily available back at home. Since moving, I've had to re-create all of my favorite dishes at home. Its great because I can whip up pretty much anything, but sometimes its a pain to have to be cooking everything all of the time....

Anyways, I had purchased some ground pork to make Filipino Lumpia rolls, but I didn't have any wrappers on hand. I Google searched Filipino ground pork recipes, and came across this blog. It seems it was deserted long ago, but this recipe caught my eye. Its pretty similar to my picadillo recipe. But the main vegetable was carrot instead of potato, Raisins for sweetness instead of corn, and pork seasoned with salt, instead of beef seasoned with cumin. I cooked it up, and I was pretty happy with the result. I altered the recipe a bit to use the items I had on hand. This dish would be a good one to keep handy to eat with lettuce wraps, or with rice. I have never tried Pinoy style rice, but it paired well with my Mexican Rice.

My Variation of Pork Giniling

Ingredients:

Olive Oil for sauteing
1 small sliced onion
1 minced garlic clove
1 lb Ground Pork
Tomato Sauce 2 tablespoons
3 small diced red potatoes
Golden Raisins - approximately 1 tablespoon
Garlic salt to taste

Method:

Heat up some oil, and sweat out the onion & garlic until fragrant. Season the pork, and brown w/ the onion on medium heat. Add the potatoes & raisins, cook for about 10 minutes. Add the tomato sauce, season to taste, cover the pan and simmer for about 10 more minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.

 

 

I served this with rice, and used a bit of ketchup (as suggested where I found the primary recipe.) The ketchup was okay... I think that would take some getting used to. I'd probably swap it out for sour cream, avocado, or salsa hahaha. Enjoy!

Hmmm

Does anyone understand what this means?? 0.o

Oishii

Over the weekend hubs and I decided to go out to my favorite sushi bar for carry out. *drool*. Just some random pics :P

 

 

 This place has such great prices for the amount of food you get. I could easily eat here Errrrrday!

 

Spider Rolls (Soft shell crab).

 

Fried prawn heads<3

 

• Sake (Salmon)
• Amaebi (Sweet Shrimp)
• Ikura (Salmon Roe)
• Ika (Squid)
• Hamachi (Yellow fin tuna)

Just writing this is making me hungry! 

Oishii Sushi

www.oishiisushiky.com/

2810 Taylorsville Road  Louisville, KY 40205

(502) 365-3474

Who do I look like?! (Joke)

A HUSBAND IS AT HOME WATCHING A

FOOTBALL GAME WHEN HIS WIFE INTERRUPTS,

HONEY,

COULD YOU FIX THE LIGHT IN THE HALLWAY?

IT'S BEEN FLICKERING FOR WEEKS NOW.

HE LOOKS AT HER AND SAYS ANGRILY,

FIX THE LIGHTS NOW?

DOES IT LOOK LIKE I HAVE

GE WRITTEN ON MY FOREHEAD?

I DON'T THINK SO.

FINE,

THEN THE WIFE ASKS,

WELL THEN, COULD YOU FIX THE FRIDGE DOOR?

IT WON'T CLOSE RIGHT

TO WHICH HE REPLIED,

FIX THE FRIDGE DOOR?

DOES IT LOOK LIKE I HAVE WESTINGHOUSE

WRITTEN ON MY FOREHEAD?

I DON'T THINK SO

FINE, SHE SAYS

THEN YOU COULD AT LEAST FIX THE STEPS TO THE FRONT DOOR?

THEY ARE ABOUT TO BREAK

I'M NOT A CARPENTER AND I DON'T

WANT TO FIX STEPS

HE SAYS, DOES IT LOOK LIKE I HAVE

ACE HARDWARE WRITTEN ON MY FOREHEAD?

I DON'T THINK SO

I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU.

I'M GOING TO THE BAR!!!!

SO HE GOES TO THE BAR AND DRINKS FOR A

COUPLE OF HOURS..............................

HE STARTS TO FEEL GUILTY ABOUT HOW

HE TREATED HIS WIFE, AND DECIDES

TO GO HOME

AS HE WALKS INTO THE HOUSE HE NOTICES

THAT THE STEPS ARE ALREADY FIXED.

AS HE ENTERS THE HOUSE , HE SEES THE

HALL LIGHT IS WORKING

AS HE GOES TO GET A BEER, HE NOTICES

THE FRIDGE DOOR IS FIXED.

HONEY, HE ASKS, HOW'D ALL THIS GET FIXED?

SHE SAID, WELL, WHEN YOU LEFT I SAT

OUTSIDE AND CRIED.

JUST THEN A NICE YOUNG MAN ASKED ME

WHAT WAS WRONG, AND I TOLD HIM.

HE OFFERED TO DO ALL THE REPAIRS, AND

ALL I HAD TO DO WAS EITHER

GO TO BED WITH HIM OR BAKE A CAKE.

HE SAID,

SO WHAT KIND OF CAKE DID YOU BAKE?

SHE REPLIED,

HELLOOOOO..

DO YOU SEE BETTY CROCKER WRITTEN

ON MY FOREHEAD?

I DON'T THINK SO! 

Hahahahaha

~Author Unknown

Flea Marketing I

Over the weekend they had a ton of fun stuff going around town. I didn't get to go to everything unfortunately... but what we *did* make it to was a blast! On Sunday, hubs surprised us with a trip to the flea market, and it was amazing! First, we stopped by their little snack cart.

 

Tot wanted popcorn, he was amazed at the huge popcorn popper haha. The lady was so impressed with him saying thank you, that she gave him his own little baggy for free. That was really sweet of her.

 

As I was ordering, I noticed on the menu that they had "Fried Apples". I asked the lady what that was, and she said they were "very good, they tasted like Cracker Barrel's.".

 

I had never had them before, so I ordered a cup. They were pretty good, but the cup was SO tiny lol. I almost asked her where the rest of it was? =X

Tot, of course, got his sugary fix :P He gets it from his mama! (I personally don't like fake sugary syrups, and tbh, I don't think he did either! He left the majority of it there.)

After the flea market, we took a tiny stroll through their flower garden. The roses were breath taking, I couldn't help but grab a quick picture. Gorgeous!

 I would've picked it haha, but I couldn't take something that didn't belong to me. =/

I'll have to wait for hubs to bring me some, or buy them myself ;)

Ky Expo Flea Market

http://www.stewartpromotions.com/louisville.asp

Kentucky Exposition Center
937 Phillips Lane
Louisville, Kentucky 40209

Flea Marketing II

Flea marketing has always been something I enjoy doing. I really wish I could go to more antique markets, but unfortunately until we buy our house, I don't think it would be wise to buy more junk to move around. I can't wait until we move! I love to decorate, and it would mean a lot to me to have our own house, and feel grounded while raising our little family. I imagine the kids outside playing in our yard while I garden. Haha I've turned into an old lady! I imagine myself canning, doing crafts, decorating, and going all out during holidays! Hopefully one day soon....

When we arrived home from the flea market, hubs surprised me with some doughnuts!

 

The best part of antiquing is coming home and unloading the treasures. I purchased this blown glass bottle to lay on my vanity. So pretty!

 

I love to cook, so whenever I find a cook book on sale I'm super intrigued.  I found 3 books (NEW) for 2 dollars a piece. They were by my favorite authors (Love Food). I think they have the best recipes, and such a huge range too. I'm surprised I actually buy books since pretty much everything is available online. I think its because I like feeling the actually book, and pages in my hands. I'm not ready for book readers quite yet.

 

I found this "Gucci" ring LOL. It'll probably never see the light of day, I can never bring myself to wear something out if its not real... (It is real silver, I just doubt the label is lol.) I just thought it was cute and shiny =X Because that makes sense haha.

 

 

I love collecting vintage perfume bottles. I'm counting the days that I can proudly display my old Avon bottles in my home. I hope to have a huge art room, and have them hanging up in a shadow box for inspiration.

 

 

This is an old Johnson & Johnson bottle. I imagine it was baby cream at some point? It's a white glass container. I love how the old bottles were all glass, I'm not fond of the plastic flimsy stuff now.

 

 

 I saw a vintage swatch watch, but it wasn't that cute =/ I considered buying it to resell, but meh... I'm in the mood to hit up more antique shops. I have a friend that has never been to a flea market, so I'm excited to start exploring some new places with her. Should be a good time!

Ky Expo Flea Market

http://www.stewartpromotions.com/louisville.asp

Kentucky Exposition Center
937 Phillips Lane
Louisville, Kentucky 40209

♥Grandma♥

My dad's mom comes to visit every so often, and when she does, its always her cooking that brings us together. Since she was leaving on Saturday morning, I decided to take the kids to visit with her on Friday afternoon. It was a good time, afterward we met up with my dad so he could spoil my Tot with Dairy Queen. I love spending time with my family.

My grandma made pozole, a Mexican soup with hominy, shredded pork, and a red chili sauce. We eat it with lime and tostadas.

 

Look at all of that spicy goodness. MmmMmmm, It was so delicious! I still have some sitting in the fridge calling for me.

 

The night before, they had gone out, and picked up some tamales. I snuck into their fridge and inhaled them!

  

It had pork filling, potatoes, and I think olives. Sounds like an odd pairing, but it was very good. I'll have to tell my hubs where its at so we can start going there on Sunday mornings, when I'm too lazy to cook.

 

My dad's favorite pie is banana cream, which of course my Grandma spoiled him and made like 3 different kinds. I had 3 slices =X

 

I was really happy to see her, and my kids loved spending time with her. She's one in a million.♥ At the end of the visit, my tot happily said "Bye DOCTOR GRANDMA!". He assumed since she had glasses on, she was a doctor -.- My kids always have me laughing!

Happy Birthday!

Today is my baby's very first birthday! I remember feeling so blissful that he was finally born, & our little family was complete<3

We had plans to go to a festival & zoo, but hubs got home too late. We ended up going to toys r us to let the boys pick out toys they wanted. I *was* going to buy a Hello kitty squinkies machine, but then I reminded myself I'm 25, not 5. My Hello Kitty obsession needs to stop at actual toys. Lol! I did grab some key chains and candy =x (Baby got some toys for his birthday, & Tot for his happy NON birthday haha.)











Afterwards, we went to Shogun's for sushi & hibachi. I can never get enough of this place!





Writing this I'm still thinking about that damn squinkie toy. One of these days I'm going to be featured on a hoarders special. It will be one where I almost drowned in hello kitty crap =x

If I don't find anything tomorrow at the market I'll probably go back and buy that squinkie toy. I think it'll look nice on my desk... Either that or these glittered hooker shoes I saw at burlington coat factory. Classsssy! =x