Friday, January 30, 2009

Super Easy Cheesy Seedy Garlic Bread

Just in time for Super Bowl Sunday.



This is a cheesy version of your everyday garlic bread. Nothing fancy about it, but oh so tasty. Here's what you need:

Margarine or butter - about a tbsp
Two cloves of garlic chopped
Half of a small or medium white onion chopped
French Rolls - make sure to get the kind with sesame seeds
Garlic Powder
Shredded Cheese
Chicken Lunchmeat

(in case you're wondering... that's sautéed onion and garlic in the small bowl on the left in the pic below. the other bowl, on the right, has the shredded cheese and slices of meat.)




These french rolls are from Fry's. Be sure and get the kind with sesame seeds; they really add to the flavor, so yummy!



This is the meat I used. This is optional. If you do use meat, you can use any kind of meat you desire. I used the shaved meat, you can use a thicker-cut of meat instead, if you prefer.



I forgot to get a pic of the garlic cloves before chopping them up(they were the last two, so didn't have anymore to use for the 'before pic'), but I did think to get a pic of the chopped garlic right before adding it to the skillet(be sure and add the chopped garlic last since it tends to burn easily). I chopped up some white onion for another recipe and used some of what I had left over for this recipe. Is this useful information? Why is this paragraph even here, you ask? I asked myself those same questions; wanna know my answer? "I dunno". No, I didn't mean I don't know if I want to know the answer, that IS the answer. Is anybody getting this? Is anyone still reading this?!? *tapping on monitor* Anyway, if you're still with me... I actually do have an answer... all of it's pretty much useless information, all except the part about adding the chopped garlic last, that's important for you to know. Got that? "Got it" ... Did I just type that out loud? Moving on now...

Put the margarine in the skillet on medium-high heat and let it melt, then add the onion to sauté. After the onion starts to become translucent, add the chopped garlic and let both sauté for a minute or so. Don't leave them in too long, they may start burning.



Cut two french rolls in half, leaving four halves. Spread margarine on each one, then sprinkle on some garlic powder(this is optional since fresh garlic will be added). Then add the sautéed onion and garlic.



Put two slices of chicken lunchmeat(for thin-cut meat, you may want to use just one slice for thicker meat) on top of the sautéed onion and garlic. Or you can skip the meat all together. I put the meat on two halves, and left the other two halves without.



Add shredded cheese; as much as you desire. I used mexican style cheese.



Put them in the oven on broil for 5 to 7 minutes. It may take less time, so be sure and keep an eye on them; take them out once the cheese is melted and bubbly on top, and before the edges burn, unless you like it this way. I like burnt edges myself, it adds to the flavor, but you know me... I'm a little on the crazy side.



Enjoy a quick, easy, and tasty snack while you're cheering the Cardinals on! :)



Caitie is my taste tester; she's thinking about what rating she's gonna give 'em.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Because he asked me to

Michael wanted me to add more pics of the soon-to-be movie room. The movie you see playing in the pics below was shown with the smaller projector, we got it back in '05, not too long before Caitie was born. It's being dubbed the 'baby bug'. ha The 'big bug' projector isn't set up yet, Michael is having a professional do it. This is serious business! The pics below are the same as the one in the previous post: grainy, blurry, etc. They were taken in low light with no flash.

Michael is trying to get the movie screen centered on the wall. It didn't help that I kept asking him to hold still so I could get a decent pic. The best part was seeing him flex his muscles, but don't tell him I told you that.



He brought in the big gun to get the job done. Well, it's actually a drill, but still... Gotta love the rhymin', or maybe I should stop tryin'. Sorry, I couldn't resist.



Movie screen inspection.



Michael is working on the baby bug projector. Quite a difference in size of projectors, don't you think?



Michael and his dad built the stand the Big Bug projector is sitting on. It weighs a ton, so needed to be placed on something that would accomodate its weight. Great job, guys!



The intermission entertainment. (the little red bow is a nice touch, don't you think? you'll see why she's wearing it in a future post.)



We decided to watch a western... 'Open Range' starring Kevin Costner and Robert Duvall. It's a slow goin' movie, until the end. You know me, I had to get a pic of the title of the movie. This started with Caitie's first movie theater experience, and is continuing, even when watching movies on the projector at home. I'm seeking help...



The quality of the picture is nothing compared to what it will be when using the Big Bug projector.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Gussying up the Big Bug's Room

I'm ashamed of this pic, and even more ashamed of the room in the pic. I took this pic in poor lighting and with no flash, so it came out dark, grainy, and blurry, which was probably for the best since it doesn't show how bad this room really looks. It's our living room, which has now become the 'big bug's'... ummm... I mean movie room. It's the only room in the house that will work for this purpose. We can't decide what kind of flooring to use in this room. We don't like the wood floor anymore, which was put in due to the carpet before it getting soaked with cat pee; that was a lovely experience, and another story for a rainy day. Anywho... I'm in serious need of an interior decorator, which brings me to the reason for this post: I found an interior decorator online. I plan to get some ideas, and put them into place, then show the transformation. I bet you can't wait. More on this in the near future...

The Polar Express Request

Caitie came down with a cold yesterday, and while resting, asked to see The Polar Exress. Even though it's a Christmas movie, I put it on for her. We probably watched it twenty times around Christmastime, but it's one of those movies you never grow tired of; even I got into it again. After getting some rest and taking some Children's Motrin, she was back to her little feisty self again.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Caitie and the Pussycats

I decided to get a few pics of Caitie on this beautiful, cloudy day. I love cloudy days. I got a few pics of her by herself, and a couple of pics of her with the cats, hence the post title. (take notice of the post time below... i actually got a post on here during the day! yay)

Little Miss Priss. :)




Gotta love the big pink bow in her hair.



Posing with Molly-Mae.



Posing with Holly-Hoo.


I love her hair in this one.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Anti-Paparazzi Pose

At least, that's what I like to call it. Caitie calls it the "mama, get that camera out of my face before I do something drastic" pose. Who could blame her after having over 500,000 pics taken of her since the day she was born.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

My Big Girl

Guess who pooped for the first time in her potty chair today... you guessed it! My little girl is growin' up. *sniff* She even knows to brush her tongue with her toothbrush. Excuse me, I need a tissue...

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Move over Inauguration headlines

Caitie going pee in her potty chair for the first time becomes the number one story on this historic day. Yay! This is one proud and happy mama. :)

I haven't put much pressure on Caitie to use her potty chair. The only thing I've done recently, being the last couple of nights, is make her sit on her potty chair for a good length of time while she watches her favorite cartoons. It may not be the best way to go about it, but it seems to be working. Yes!



Oh yeah, and this happened today too...

Let's remember to pray for our new President, and for the future of our country.



Thank you, President Bush, for keeping us safe for the last eight years.

Missing out on a not-so-cheap thrill

Did any of you try for NFC Championship game tickets? I did. Right after the Eagles/Giants game I got online and went to ticketmaster.com and got as far as being able to purchase tickets. I had two chances to get tickets, but gave them up. I thought the tickets were too pricey, even for a playoff game. I heard that the game sold out in less than five minutes. I had two chances to get what many Cardinals fans didn't have a chance of getting, except through ticket scalpers(which i despise) on eBay and elsewhere, at extremely high prices. Knowing this made me wish I had bought the tickets; not so I could have gone to the game(i've never been to a cardinals game, or watched them on tv; i'm not all that interested), or could have sold them for three times what they were worth, but just because I COULD have bought them. It would have been so easy... with just the click of the mouse, three tickets could have been mine. Please say this is normal behavior. It is normal, right?

Oh... I almost forgot... when I heard the Cardinals won and will be heading to the Super Bowl, I decided to try for Super Bowl tickets... (ummm... I need help... I have some serious issues...)

Anyway...

Go Cardinals!

Mammals over Birds

We took Caitie to the zoo on Sunday. We chose to look at mammals over watching the bird species, specifically the Eagles and Cardinals, go at it in the NFC Championship game. We received a flyer in the mail the other day letting us know that the zoo was having a grand opening of a new play area, the Fisher Price Little People Discovery Farm, and thought Caitie would enjoy checking it out. She loved it! We also went on a train ride, and then rode the carousel a few times. We ended up being there all day and into the night. It was the last night for Zoo Lights, which was free admission, so we stuck around. I'm glad we did since we found a section of zoo lights we had missed the first time we went to view them.

I got a quick pic of Caitie's hair before heading in to the zoo; we were in the zoo parking lot.






I always start with the giraffes; I find them to be very photogenic, with their long necks, and all.



X marks the spot.









"Do you mind? Can't you see this is a private conversation?"



On our way to the train ride.



A quick pic before the train heads out.



Another quick pic of some birds. I like the birds' reflection in the water. (so we did see some birds after all.)



Here is the new play area.











Here are some pics of Caitie on the carousel.









I sneaked this pic of Michael while riding the carousel.



Caitie enjoying a cherry/grape snow cone.







Some pics of the Zoo Lights.







Deciding on bracelets this time in the zoo gift shop.