Get Yo Mind Right

One more day left before we kiss 2010 goodbye. I can’t lie, 2010 was a challenging year for me. Work wise and on the home front….lots of issues arose but I can say that I learned from all of the challenges and became stronger as a result.

WIth the new decade looming, I know that big things are in store for me next year. I am hoping for a successful year at work and I know that I need to concentrate my efforts in the right areas and not get caught up in the day to day minutia. I need to make daily goals for myself and achieve them. Working smarter, not harder.

On the homefront, continue to work on projects around the house, investing in my family’s future and enjoying even more quality time with my boys and Mr. 1969. I need to work on my patience and learning to say no to projects and obligations that take me outside of the house.

The key to 2011 for me will be staying focused on taking care of my health. Training for my race is jumping off in a major way for the first six months of the year. I am excited and overwhelmed at the same time. I am so happy about having a fitness goal. When I have a goal, something to work towards…I stay motivated. I want to take care of me because it makes me do better in all aspects of my life. When I feel good about what I am eating and exercising consistently…I am a happier person…PERIOD.

Spiritually, I want to continue to read my bible and work on my personal relationship with God. This is an ongoing goal in my struggle to be less selfish and focus more on what I can do for others rather than myself.

Socially, I plan on continuing all of my service projects. I was able to help so many people through my sorority this year. I was able to do everything from volunteering at soup kitchens, feeding needy families at Thanksgiving, planning a community health fair, adopting families in need and providing books and school supplies to playing BINGO with senior citizens….I was able to personally help so many Philadelphia residents. I hope to continue to make time for these days of service as they really make me feel fulfilled.

Now, there are so many shortcomings I need to work on. We talked about my selfishness, there’s laziness, cranky attitudes and all around short temperedness. I have no shortage of faults. Some of you readers have felt the wrath this year. I am not always easy to deal with. What can I say? I’m sorry for the days when I take things too personally. I am striving to let stuff roll off my back in 2011. All I can do is continue to reflect and make adjustments.

I am getting ready for the New Year. How about you? Get Yo Mind Right!

The Christmas Meal

As I told you earlier, I decided to tackle my first standing Prime Rib Roast and it came out absolutely perfect.  I have to admit though…once I put it in the oven, I had a moment of sheer panic and called Erica B to ask how long she cooks hers. LOL All, in all, I cooked it for two hours and it was exactly right.

Step One- Let the roast sit oustide of the refrigerator for two hours in your roasting pan covered by a paper towel for two hours prior to cooking.

You want the meat to be devoid of moisture when you start and at room temperature.

STEP TWO: Season the roast. I used Kosher salt, Frehly Ground Black Pepper, Cayenne Pepper, Garlic Salt, and finely diced Rosemary. I mixed all this in a bowl.

Then I rubbed the roast with a light drizzle of olive oil and patted the spices all over it. This will look like a lot of salt but it forms a crust on the outside and does not seep into the meat…I swear!

Voila…seasoned roast ready to go in the oven. See?

STEP THREE: Cook it! I cooked it for 20 minutes at 450 degrees so the outside could get crusty. Then I lowered it to 325 degrees for another hour and 40 minutes. All in all, two good hours of cooking time for a three bone, seven pound rib roast.

STEP FOUR: Ahhhhh!

Since I no longer eat meat, I also baked a salmon. Easy and ready in 20 minutes. See?

Rounding out the meal? Wild Rice, Mushroom and Cabernet Gravy and Spinach with garlic and lemon. Here’s the final holiday plate.

The roast met with rave reviews from Mr. 1969 (who ate two plates and is currently knocked out on the couch like he did a few rounds with Pacquio).

I will probably make another roast if we have folks over. It was really easy and looks great for presentation. People will think you really did it up.

I am going to try and post more recipes this year per reader requests. Hope you are enjoying your Holiday meal with your family.

Merry Christmas!

Joy To The World

Hoping your Christmas is as exciting as the Tali’s Christmas. (Est time 6:30AM)

Merry Christmas From My Blog to You

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

Strictly COAL

It’s Christmas Eve. The whole house is excited for the arrival of Mr. S. Claus later tonight. The presents are wrapped and hidden waiting for the Tali’s to go to sleep so they can make their appearance. The groceries are purchased for a wonderful Christmas morning breakfast and a fabulous dinner cooked with love.

The boys are watching Holiday movies. I am sitting here nursing a spiked egg nog typing this blog post. Ahhhh….life is good.

Wait. Where’s Mr. 1969 you ask? Oh, well he is upstairs. Why isn’t he spending Holiday time with us? Oh, cause he decided to paint our bedroom and bathroom TODAY. Yes, on Christmas Eve. *blankstare*

I am trying to be a good girl because Santa is coming. Please send all Holiday prayers my way.

Christmas Dinner 2010

This year, I am going out on a limb and doing something a little different. Since, Mr. 1969 eats so much chicken and seafood due to my non-meat/pork lifestyle, I have decided to make him a fabulous MEAT lovers meal.

The menu involves this:

A Prime Rib Roast. What could be better for my steak loving husband on Christmas day? The problem? Uh…I’ve never made one and right now, this is what I have sitting in my fridge:

So, I am online studying recipes and techniques so I can take the basic premise and run with my own version come Jesus’ Birthday. I am probably going to utilize a combination of Ina Gartner/Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse’s Prime Rib recipes infusing the 1969 twist.

I plan on taking pictures as I go so I can share the outcome. Don’t be afraid to try something new and take on new challenges. That’s my mantra for 2011!

What are you having for Christmas Dinner?

Staycation

This last month at work has been a rough one. I ended up not making my quarterly goal after not missing a goal for the past two years. *sigh* Even though I know that this happens, it never happens to ME.  It was not how I wanted to end the year and puts more pressure on me for next year.

Needless to say, I was so looking forward to today. Why? Cause I am out on vacation until the New Year and this week? No kids at home until Friday. What’s that you hear? Music maybe?

Today, I slept in (well 8am is sleeping in for me when I normally get up around 5:30-6am). I hit the gym, I hung out with Mr. 1969 at Lowes and looked at paint samples (we are redesigning our bedroom as a Christmas gift to ourselves), ate a leisurely breakfast/lunch and then fit in a nice visit this afternoon with one of my girlfriends. In short, I did me!

Nothing like a good staycation to clear the mind. We typically travel to see family in New York and New Jersey over Christmas but after hosting family for Thanksgiving, the SixtyNine family is going….NOWHERE!

I don’t know about you, but it’s the gift that keeps on giving for me. Even Wonder Woman likes a lazy afternoon nap every once in a while. Happy Holidays everyone.

Open Letter

I love men.
Men that fix things.
Men that take care of their responsibilities without complaint.
Men that give hugs.
Men that can solve their problems by talking things through.
Men that show respect to women.
Men that are not selfish.
Men that are brave.
Men that don’t shirk from responsibility.
Men that give from the heart out of love.
Men that are not spiteful.
Men that love their children and put their safety, well-being and happiness first.
Men that can love the mother of their child even if they are no longer together or in love at all.
Men that choose to uplift instead of tear down.
Men that don’t have to cause someone pain to make themselves feel like more of a man.
Men that can move on without anger.
Men without excuses.
Men that love women.
Men that love themselves.
To all the real men out there….
I love you.

Repeat Offender

A few weeks ago, Tali 2 came home with a pocket pencil sharpener. Not a big deal but he was using it to sharpen all of his pencils down to the nubs. Mr. 1969 finally took it away from him since he seemed obsessed with sharpening all of the pencils in the house.

The next day, he came home with another pencil sharpener. Same thing, all of his pencils were sharpened all the way down. When I asked him where he got the pencil sharpener, he told me he got it from his teacher for being a good boy.

Later that same week, I went through his bookbag to get his crayon box and found two more pencil sharpeners. I asked him where he was getting all of the pencil sharpeners. He told me that he was getting them all from his teacher.  Tali 1 said “Mom, they have a treat basket at school and when you do something good, you can pick something. Maybe he is picking them from the basket?” It sounded good but something wasn’t sitting right with me.

I looked Tali 2 in the eye and asked him where he got the pencil sharpeners one more time.

He turned red and said….”My teacher.”

I asked him if he was sure because I was going to ask his teacher tomorrow if she was giving him all these pencil sharpeners.

He cracked. He started crying and told me he took them from his friends’ desks. He was going into everyone’s desk and swiping their sharpeners. Tali 2, who was acquitted due to a mistrial/hung jury in his previous trial for the murder of the 1969 goldfish is now stealing!

My baby has Brooklyn running all through his little Kleptomaniac veins. *sigh*

We ended up talking about taking things that don’t belong to you. We talked about how the other kids would feel. How he would feel if someone was taking his stuff. Then we made him return all of the pencil sharpeners to their rightful owners at school. I’ve got my eye on that boy.

What say you now Tali 2 supporters?

Naughty or Nice?

I don’t know, I’ve been kind of back and forth this year. A lump of coal may be in my near future. Just in case it’s not….here are a few things I have on my Holiday Wish List.

The Pioneer Woman’s Cookbook

I love her website/blog. I love her pictures. I need this cookbook for my collection. Nuff said!

Living Proof

As someone with naturally curly (bordering on frizzy) hair. I have heard great things about the living proof line and would love to try it. This kit is currently available at Sephora and the bottles are small enough to fit in my stocking!

TSE Cashmere Sweater

What could be better than a cashmere sweater. Yeah, it’s wayyyy out of my price range at a mere $600 on sale but a girl can dream right? LOL

Le Crueset

As someone that loves to cook…this is the holy grail of pots. It’s pricey but it would be an investment that lasts a lifetime. I need this 7 quart dutch oven in my life.

Nike

It’s not Christmas without Nike!

Triathalon Suit

Gotta have a pink Tri-Suit for my Triathalon right?

What’s on your wishlist?