Eats

What a busy weekend! I was happy to go to work on Monday, just to get a break.
I finished painting the large guest room Friday night. Bunny Gray from Benjamin Moore. I tried the Aura paint and was mostly happy with it. The color is more blue than I wanted, but it works. I need to hang the sheers and put on the new bedding to get the full effect.

After a much needed pedicure on Saturday, I hit the grocery store, home, the frame shop and a mattress store. Then headed to Mom's where we dug out the headboard, footboard and rails stored in her garage. We are adding a twin bed to the guest room and Mom is letting us use her childhood bed!
John and I cleaned house and prepped stuff for dinner. Our friends Heidi, Todd and Brenda came over. John grilled and we all talked to Javi via Skype. Heidi and Todd brought dessert and it was delicious!

Here's the recipe, Heidi's notes included...

***Heidi’s Cream Cheese Angel Food Dessert***

2 small pkgs Dream Whip
2 - 8 oz. pkgs cream cheese (we used the 1/3 less fat version), softened
1 C. powdered sugar
2 C. half & half, cream or milk (we used 2% milk; my mom uses cream)
1 9 x 5 angel food cake (we used most of one of the round ones from
Dillon's), cut or torn into bite-sized pieces
Topping - any kind of berry (we used blueberries and strawberries) or
canned blueberry or cherry pie filling
1/2 chopped pecans or other nuts

Mix dream whip, cream cheese, 2 cups cream/milk/half & half and
powdered sugar (we let ours mix until it was about pudding
consistency); fold in cake pieces. Spoon over nuts in a 9x13" pan.
Sprinkle with berries or put fruit pie filling on top. Refrigerate.
To serve, scoop out. Serves 12-15.

Sunday was spent gardening and doing just enough laundry to get by. Exhaustion hit just as I was needing to get stuff ready to take to Mom & Dad's. Aunt Margaret & Uncle Jack are in town! So everyone got together for steaks. I brought Aunt Carrie's Loaded Mashed Potatoes, which were well received. Prepare mashed potatoes as usual (usual for me is butter and evaporated milk, salt & pepper). Add bacon bits, lots of sour cream, grated cheese, more salt & pepper---spoon into 9x13 dish and top with more grated cheese. Bake for about 30 min. at 350 or so. I mince green onion and serve on the side for those who wish to top their dish.

No cooking tonight! Going out for Mexican and just one or two margaritas. I hope to have the energy to do some more work upstairs while I watch Real Housewives of New Jersey. Don't you judge me.

And we're back

And where have I been? Just procrastinating and stalling as usual. I kept telling myself to go blog, but time slipped away. Eventually, so much time passed that I just gave up on the whole idea of blogging. But that's crazy talk!

I'm happiest when I'm decorating or changing something. It's been a while since I've done anything, so I'm thrilled to be working on the guest bedroom and bath. I wish I could go whole hog on the bathroom, but I can't. We can only do what needs to be done---changing the shower fixture, the bathroom faucet, fixing the trim and then cosmetic changes like painting and wall decor.

Back in 2005 or 2006, I fell in love with a shower curtain in the Gump's catalog. It cost more than any shower curtain should ever cost, so I threw the catalog away. I still dreamt of it though, so 6 months later, I went to the Gump's site and found the curtain on clearance! Which of course it would be, because how many people want a crazy Indian themed shower curtain...

So it's been hanging in the guest bath, waiting for walls to be painted and everything to come together. I think I've decided on Polar Sky from Benjamin Moore for the walls. I found an antique map of India that I need to frame. I ordered an elephant print yesterday from Etsy.
We bought new hardware and the handyman is working on replacing some tile and fixing the trim.
I need something else for the walls and am obsessing over it. I've looked at everything on Etsy with India in the description, then I looked at it again. I can't make up my mind...I don't want whatever I choose to compete with the beautiful shower curtain. So now, I am thinking of making something myself. I doodled all day yesterday and now Hobby Lobby is calling my name.