Christmas Makes My Pets Go Crazy

This year is Wiley's first ever Christmas! Being that he was a wild desert dog, he's not exactly sure what to do with the very green, very leafy tree that has sprung up in the living room; he alternated between slinking by it, staring at it, and very carefully sniffing it for the first couple hours after it was put up.
Tigerlily, on the other hand, has been waiting all year for Christmas to roll around... it's the one season where she can lie down on and maul shiny gold stuff, as opposed to just mauling everything else.

Hopefully more consistent posting soon!

xoxo

Very, Very Belated Wednesday Wileys

   Wiley was a bit of a wild, crazy dog today... and he knew it (just look at that guilty face!). He'd just gotten a bath, and apparently in dog-world that's equivalent to drinking 10 triple-shot lattes. I could have taken pictures of him running around for hours since he wasn't slowing down, but at some point in time he decided running in the courtyard wasn't fun, and running around the city would be a much better idea. He squeezed through the little hole in our gate and took off, tail-wagging, down the block and across the street... and then another street... and then took a turn on another block...
   When we finally caught him, it was because he'd taken a turn onto a dead end street. He was extremely pleased with himself, probably for having gotten me to run like a raving lunatic in front of the windows of a classroom full of college students who then decided to stop their class to stare at me.
   The last picture is right after he had his leash put back on... and you can't quite tell, but that tail is wagging a mile a minute.

xoxo,

10 Favorites

1. Pretty yarn and knitting. It has become a reason to wake up in the morning.

2. My new skull bracelet/coffee-cozy. On one hand, it's a bracelet; on the other... it's a coffee-cozy.

4. The hat I (sort-of-really-kinda-a-lot) guilt-tripped Peggy into trading me for last Christmas at the gift swap. It does miracles for my bad-hair/lazy-days, and it's very warm.

3. The Pioneer Woman's autobiographical book about how she met her husband. Finally, a story with a romance I don't end up bemoaning for being fictional! 

5. Nutella-Cheescake Pumpkin Muffins. They are gone now, which makes me very sad.

6. The tank-top I recently rediscovered from my birthday party in 2010. The quote on the back and the unexpected zombie theme was courtesy of my dear friend Kimmie-Bell.

7. The fact that it's almost that time of year again. GO BEARS!!

8. Olive Cheesy-Eggs. Yum.

9. Getting mail from colleges... it makes me feel very loved.

10. Planning and preparing Brittany's care package. Shhh, it's a surprise! ;)

xoxo

How-To: Olive Cheesy-Eggs

Plain scrambled eggs live on the long list of things that I absolutely cannot stand to eat, but recently I've invented a new version that I like MUCH better. And felt like sharing.

Olive Cheesy-Eggs: 2 Eggs, 6-ish Manzanilla Olives (the green ones with the orange things inside), Shredded Cheese (the bagged kind), and Kalamata Olive Spread.

1. Chop the olives. I cut them three times in both directions, but it doesn't really matter.

2. Put two eggs, a small handful of shredded cheese, the chopped olives and a half-spoon of kalamata olive spread into a cup. I use this amount as about one serving. (By the way, kalamata olive spread is fantastic on sandwiches, too, so I recommend having it around.)

3. Put a slice of butter into a small pan set on medium heat. Spread the butter around the pan as it starts to melt, and then pour the egg-mixture in as well.

4.  Scramble them! When the liquid mixture starts to bubble, begin pushing it around with a spatula. It'll look cooked after a couple flips, but it's only done when the wet, eggy-parts are gone.

And viola! You have Olive Cheesy-Eggs!

Enjoy :)

Baking Adventure #3

   

Since I've been having a pumpkin obsession recently, I decided I had to make Nutella Cheesecake Pumpkin muffins. Which wasn't as random as it sounds; I found a recipe when visiting my cooking muse, and then I had to make it. It was no longer a choice.

And if you can't tell by the zillion muffin pictures, I'm very proud of them. They actually look like they turned out properly! It's a miracle! They taste really good, too... which is always a plus. 

The recipe was super easy compared to my more recent adventures, and there's even a version with commentary and pictures. Which is this version. Which is probably my favorite version, but it's not exactly easy to print out without creating a small novel. 

Hope everyone's having a good weekend!

xoxo