Women can never win.

You're probably in denial about your weight, That is what I woke up to this morning. Post like that make me sick, literally sick to my stomach. This self deprecation of woman's body gets me so heated, so angry that I can barely see straight.
We as women can never win.
If we are overweight but are happy with our selves we are in denial.
If we are skinny but happy with our selves we are anorexic.
We are thrown images daily, no scratch that HOURLY about how a woman "should" look.
Look at almost any magazine cover, watch almost any television ad and you get bombarded with images of medias ideal women.
Or you get images of women "to thin" or "to fat"

 Images like these

Then you get home and it doesn't end.
Online, on facebook, on blogs, on pinterest, tumbler, redit, everywhere you look you see images and posts hating on all shapes and sizes of women.
Its not right!
For example looking at clothes on Pinterest you can't scroll down without seeing "this outfit would be cute if the model wasn't anorexic." Or looking through funny images you can't scroll without seeing a picture of a woman with "Fat fat fattie"

And its not just one type of body that gets this type of attention its all kinds of body types.
skinny girls get told "to eat a sandwich" or regulary asked if they are anorexic, they get nicknames like stretch or bones.
Thick girls get an eye brow raise at a restaurant when they order fries instead of a salad, they get nick names like chubby or fatty.
Athletic girls get told they need to unwind, they need to eat a cheese burger. They get nicknames like beast, or dyke. They get asked if they take steroids
They all get asked,  "your going to eat all that?" You've probably heard that before, you probably just heard it in the condescending tone of voice you've heard it in all your life.
Its not fair, its not nice.
Why can't we support eachother, why can't we accept eachothers bodies?
WHY do we hate so damn much?
We need to not judge eachother based on body type, we need to accept who we are, and what we look like. Be happy with who WE are and not hate others for who THEY are.

Ugh this rambling rant is over. I hope my point came across clear.

I love it when it gets big.

 Update on my garden.
look how BIG it has gotten. I am SO proud. It keeps growing and growing!

 Look at the collards they are huge!
And my tomatoes are standing all big and proud. :) Its been about 40 and they are doing so good. Roughly 50 more days to go till I get full beautiful fruit. I can't wait!

 Lettuce is big and such a pretty green

 My Oregano, parsley, and thyme are all healthy, we use them all the time! I swear they are like weeds, they grow so fast.

 Peppers bigger. The one in the yellow wasn't doing so well where it was, so we moved it to the other side of the porch next to its "brother" and it perked right up!

Look how close it is to fruiting. Eeeee *squeal of happiness*

Here I've added some basil because well, no herb garden is complete without basil right? Also as you can see the broccoli has tripled in size!

Lookit my strawberry, I can't wait for them to be ripe! Fresh strawberry short cake? Yes please!!!

I hope you enjoy my garden growing as much as I do!

Do you suggest anything for me to add?

Spicy orange Salmon with Avocado rolls

The other day I was in the mood for something fresh.
I was so tired of my good old fashioned home cooked comfort food *gasp!*
Soooo I changed it up a bit.
Chipotle orange salmon and Avocado spring rolls.
Let me tell you, this was absolutely deeeeeeeelicious!
The salmon was spicy, yet sweet and tangy.
The rolls were crunchy on the outside and creamy and smooth on the inside.
Perfect fix for my comfort food rut.
I got the general idea this dinner from Good Housingkeeping, and Life Ann Style. Though I did add, take away, and just changed some things about the recipes.

What you'll need:
3 Salmon filet
2 chipotle chile in adobo sauce
1 tsp red chili paste
2 tsp adobo sauce
3 cloves garlic, peeled (I like garlic, can you tell?)
1/2 cup orange juice


4 avocados
1/2 a red onion
Some jar sundried tomatoes
Cilantro paste
4 pieces of bacon
Spring roll pastries (These are hard to find, But kroger has them in the produce/health food section)

NOW lets start cooking 
Line a deep basin cookie sheet with tin foil, this makes for easy clean up!
And throw your salmon on that
Now preheat the oven to broil, we want it HOT
In a food processor or blender squish up the Chipolte chilies, garlic, adobo sauce, chili paste, and orange juice. Spicy yet sweet!
Cover your salmon in the chili paste
Broil for 5-10 min on the middle rack of the oven.

Now for the Spring rolls

Cut your avocados into chunks, chop up your onions, and tear your bacon.
Mix them all together with your cilantro paste and sun dried tomatoes.
Now, take that mixture and put about a spoon full on a corner of a spring roll pastry
Roll about 1/2 way, then fold in the sides making it stick by using a bit of water on your finger tip
Then finish rolling, again using water to make it stick.
Repeat till all your avocado mixture is gone.
Heat up some veggie oil in a fry pan and drop your spring rolls in it, once the pastry is golden brown they are done.

Yummy yummy yummy.
So fresh, so tasty, soooooooo good.

If you made to many avocado rolls, they freeze really well, and when you want some pop them in the microwave frozen and cook for 2 min (on a 1100 watt microwave)


When you are in the mood for something fresh what do you cook?

Sexy Guest post for my Sexy friend.

I made a guest post for my friend the sexy sex author.
She writes some great romance novels, get your kink on with Toto and Dorthy from her rendition of wizard of oz, or her sexy story about the gods of Greek myths.
Though I must let you know, her blog is often times not safe for work, or small children.
With posts such as the sexy pictures of the week (though almost every post has a sexy picture of some oh so Delicious man) and six sentence Sunday with exerts from her books, you'll get something exciting from her blog.
Welcome To My Island. Author DXLuc
Hope you enjoy her blog as much as I do!

First hair cut!

My little boy is growing up way to fast. He'll be 16 months on the 13th. That CRAZY 2 years ago around this time I found out I was pregnant. Now, he's a toddler running around like crazy, trying to make my hair go gray early.
He is the joy of my life, and my baby.
Or was my baby, now he is a toddler. His new hair cut reaffirms this too. He no longer LOOKS like a baby!

Before

before

during

during

after

after

Guh a buzz cut. What have I done? All his beautiful soft baby hair. It makes me cry, seriously, I cried.
He's got to grow up though right? And he looks cute regardless of what his hair looks like.
So even though he no longer looks like a baby, he'll always be my baby.
I love him so much.

Easiest fricken biscuits EVER!

Biscuits, ah I love me some biscuits. Seriously, they are great for breakfast through dinner. Smother it with sausage gravy, sandwich some meat inside it, spread some honey on it, or use it to soak up your soup. Mmmm biscuits. Now I want some damn biscuits.
ANYWAYS. These biscuits are hearty, flaky, fluffy, soft, tasty, but most importantly they are EASY. Oh so easy to make. Seriously I don't think you could mess this one up.

Things you'll need
2 cups of self rising flour
1/4th cup shortening (or 3ish large scoops)
2/3 cup of milk


NOW, Lets start cookin'!
Preheat your oven to 350*

Fold your shortening into the flour, which is a fancy way of saying squish the shortening with a fork till it is mixed well with flour.

Next, add the milk, one splash at a time, also don't mix it to much or it will make the biscuits hard.
Now you can stop here and make drop biscuits, just drop balls of dough on a cookie sheet and bake for 7 minutes.
or

To make folded biscuits, drop a bit on a floured surface and press them flat with your hands well floured.
Fold then press flat, fold again then press flat, fold again and press flat, fold again and press flat. keep doing that then put them on a cookie sheet and bake for 7 min.


And there you have it, easy to make biscuits!
Enjoy!


How do you like your biscuits?

Pictures

 Just a post filled with pictures that make me happy

Note, I'm not a photographer.

Big helper

Cooling off in the sprinkler

Slide!

Spin!

Climb!

Nana Robin love

Dare devil

Wayne

I've been delaying doing this post for a while now. I'm lost in thought, I'm hurt, I'm angry, I'm still in denial.
On March 21st 2012 we lost a good friend to suicide.
Wayne. Wayne was a good friend, a great friend. Full of heart he hid it from people who didn't really know him by being a sarcastic asshole. If you could get past his walls he was one of the best friends you could ever have. He was the first of my husbands friends that I hung out with. As soon as we got introduced he looks straight at my husband and says "Good choice, A whole lot better than the last one man" And gives me an ear to ear grin.

His ear to ear grin

After hanging out with him a few times he grew on me like moss on a tree. One evening I turned to him and said "Hey Wayne, I don't have many friends...... Will you be my friend." He blinked at me like I just said the stupidest thing he's ever heard. A grin slowly spreads across his face and he laughs "I don't think I've actually had anyone ask ME to be their friend...... Yeah, yeah Lorren I'll be your friend."

Though I loved him, I was one of the many. My husband considered him his best friend, and so did countless other. He was one of the guys that even though you hadn't hung out with him in a while, he'd still be there for you if you called and needed help.

"big smiles" A toast to Wayne
(At his memorial)

I don't know why he did what he did, I don't know the back story, I don't know how he felt. We saw him the Saturday before and nothing seemed amiss. But, now he is gone, we can never ask him why. I know he will be missed. Rest in peace Wayne, your demons can no longer get you where you are.

Boy did my garden grow!

So, as we know I planted a garden in a bath tub
Well it has grown!
I get so excited when I see that my plants have gotten bigger!
I also mulched the top of it to help keep soil moist and keep down weeds and pests.

I couldn't stop there!
I found out you can buy edible plants and seed with EBT/SNAP card!
Sooooo we got more. :)

Broccoli and Strawberries

Orange peppers, Red peppers

Spicy oregano, German thyme
Yellow peppers

Romaine lettuces, and Cucumber

And down here, you can barley see Cantaloupe, Tomatoes, and Onion.
Next week I'm planting yellow and red potatoes!

The clear buckets were part of a storage drawer system, we just poked holes in the bottom.
And the colored buckets were a dollar each! They are waste baskets from the dollar tree.

Love watching my plants grow!

Chicken potpie and peach crisp

I am seriously addicted to comfort food.
There is just something to home cooked thick flavorful food that makes me think of "home"
Even if my moms idea of chicken pot pie is the kind you buy frozen and microwave.

So here is a recipe of chicken pot pie made mainly with canned food, but you can substitute fresh or frozen. It was silent in my house while we were eating this, I also got told it was the best thing I've come up with yet!

What you'll need 
filling
1 can of cut carrots (drain)
1 can of sweet peas (drain)
1 can of chicken broth
1 can of cream of celery
2 large cans of chicken breast (drain)


crust
1 and 1/2 cup of milk
1 stick of butter
1 and 1/2 cup of  self rising flour


Make it
Preheat oven to 350*F
Fold butter into flour in a mixing bowl.
Add milk mix till it has an even consistency. 
Mix all the cans into a large casserole dish 
Pour the crust dough on top.
cook for 60 min, check to make sure dough is done all the way through.

 Eat and enjoy!



And as a special bonus dessert!
Peach crisp.


What you'll need
a few peaches
2 cups of oatmeal
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/2 stick of butter


Start cooking
Preheat oven to 350*F
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl well.
put the butter in and smush with finger till all butter is mixed really well with dry ingredients
Slice peaches and put in a casserole dish
Top with oatmeal mixture
bake for 45min

  Very good. Crispy on top and smushy on bottom and sweet all the way through!

Are comfort foods your favorite?
How do you make crisps?
Let me know what you think!

Trip to Athens

So about two week ago me made a trip to Athens, Georgia.
They were supposedly filming a new movie with Justin Timberlake and Clint Eastwood and Amy Adams. More information on this movie.
We didn't get a chance to see them, but the whole town came out to people watch. It was interesting to just sit there and watch the people waiting to see if they could catch a glimpse of a star.

We sat around across the street from the globe, where they were filming that evening.

While waiting around I take random pictures of things. Like my boots?
My favorite Christmas present.

Along the road we saw this super cool stop sign.
"Never stop loving"
That is such an awesome thing to see.

Henry just chilling as we wait around. He looks sleepy here, but he was saying "Hi" and waving to people as they passed.

And that was the extent of the day, but it was fun walking around cute shops in down town Athens. We got out of the house and spent time as a family.

Mushroom Marsala with pork and Asparagus

Mushroom Marsala cream sauce
Seasoned and fried pork
Crisp steamed asparagus

I love pork, huge obsession with it. Anyway you can cook up pig I will eat it (including scrapple, and jowl. Though I haven't tried feet, snout, or tongue Id probably still eat it)
And mushrooms mmmm Raw or cooked I LOVE eating some fungus!

Anyways lets cook!

What you'll need
1lb of Pork tenders
1/2 cup oil
seasoning

2lbs asparagus
1 tbsp butter

1lb of mushrooms
1/4 cup of butter
1 cup Marsala wine
2/3 cup heavy cream



Fried pork.
I started by butterflying my pork tenders so they are thinner and easier to fry.
I seasoned them a little bit, some salt, pepper, and garlic
Heat up some oil in a fry pan, about 1/2 the height of your tallest piece of pork.
Let is get hot and gently drop your pork into the pan.
Let it sizzle for about 5 min, then flip and continue to cook.
When the meat has turned whitish gray all the way through its done.

Asparagus
I like my veggies steamed, it keeps all the yummy goodness in the veggie instead of it floating in the water.
So stick a pot of water under a metal colander or steamer.
Simmer it on low, to high and you'll cook all the flavor out of the asparagus
Depending on how soft you like your veggies is how long you cook them.
I like them crispy so I cooked them for about 15 min.

Next up, Mushrooms in a Marsala cream sauce

Saute your mushrooms in butter until they are good and soft.

Next add your Marsala wine
Let it simmer until about half is cooked out
add about 2/3 a cup of heavy cream stir and let simmer for about 2 min.

cup of wine for the mushrooms, sip of wine for the cook.

 Combine it all together over rice and you have a really tasty creamy, meal with a little bite from the wine!

Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Meatloaf green bean casserole

 Home cooked favorites.
Green bean casserole  and meatloaf, put them together and you get comfort food at its finest!
Mmmmmm!
Feeds about 5

 

Things you'll need

French fried onions

1 small sweet yellow onion 

1 egg

1 cup milk

1 cup (or so) flour

some veggie oil

Seasoning of your choice

Casserole

3 peices of bread

1 lb of beef

2 eggs

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1 can of beans

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

2/3 cup milk

Seasonings of your choice My suggestions garlic, black pepper, and salt

Start: French fried onions
Mix Egg and milk in bowl, and flour into separate bowl
Cut onion into thin slices and mix with egg/milk
Dust with flour then let them sit for about 15 min while your oil heats up
You do this so the flour wont flake off as soon as it hits the oil - Tip to check if your oil is hot, put a little tiny bit of water on your finger tips and flick it into the oil, if it pops your good, if it sizzles too hot, if it does nothing not hot enough.
Let fry till flour is a nice golden brown.

 Casserole start
Preheat oven to 375
Put your bread on the bottom of a casserole dish. This soaks up all the fat from your meat so it doesn't make your beans taste weird.

 

 Mix meat, bread crumbs, eggs and seasonings together well.

This is really fun to do with your hands. Oooh squishy

Spread evenly over the bread.

 

 In sauce pan mix green beans (drained), cream of mushroom soup, and milk till soup is an even consistency.
Pour this green bean cream of mushroom mixture on top of the meat.

Top with your fried onions.

Cover it with tin foil and bake for 40 min

Eat and enjoy!

I forgot to take a picture until after I ate it. mmmm yummy

Let me know what you think!
Also, what are some of your favorite comfort foods?