LOVING FRIDA, Shining Star

So my eyes went for their check-up and came out wearing those dark colored glasses they make you wear when they dilate your eyes. I don't mind going to SEE the EYE doctor and in fact prefer that to the yearly exam.

So like a good girl I went and now my glasses are on order and while I wait for them to come in, I'll use my Dr. Dean Edell glasses. According to the eye doctor, I had selected the right number for distance when I purchased the Dr. Dean Edell eyeglasses at Longs. So now I'm good to go. Today it is actually windy and we had a little rain. I am so ready for the change, it's my time. I seem to revitalize at this time of year.

Not too much on the agenda for today. I'm thinking of pulling out a canvas and painting the whole thing black for now. This has been on my mind this past week and just haven't gotten around to doing it. I lost 4 pounds and a few inches but I am by no means where I want to be. I'm doing it slow though and I sure as heck am not going to not eat what I want to eat. I just
try  to moderate. I do want to cook that chicken that my new blogger friend Gloria cooked up and I'll print out the recipe today and get the needed items tomorrow. In fact I will print it out right now while I'm here.

So for the rest of the day I am just doing odds and ends, reading a little. painting a little, doing a load in the wash, planning dinner and just enjoying being home. Hope everyone has a great evening. Take care.

My esposo doesn't care for these type of drinks. Fresh fruit with lime, sugar, water and I add mint. We had watermelon in the frig that had gotten a little soft but still good. I know he wouldn't care for it, so I make it for myself and that's why you see so little in this huge jar. I love this jar. I fill it up with something to drink when we are outside and just ladle the drink into a glass with ice.












I added strawberries as well just for fun. It's a delish drink.

Just put the watermelon or whatever fruits you have in a blender. I used the watermelon, water, and sugar. I actually used Splenda so as not to have to much sugar since the watermelon is already sweet. Add a dash of salt and the lime juice or even lemon juice and puree. It can also be strained if you don't want a little pulp, but I like it.
Pour it into a large jar and refrigerate to chill and then pour over ice. Very refreshing.













My empty glass jar ready to have some agua fresca poured into it.











I hope you are all have a great start to your week. I've done my exercise this morning, went to WinCo for just a few groceries. I am still being frugal and only buying groceries when needed.

HAVE A GREAT REST OF THE DAY AND I SHALL RETURN. VIVA LA AGUA FRESCA!

I've always talked about how I freeze my tomatoes so as to have tomatoes for the winter and never really posted of how I used the tomatoes or maybe I have but here's another one. First let me upload the pictures. There, all uploaded. The first and second picture is the double bagged frozen tomatoes, about 10 per bag. All I need right now is two for the rice I am making. I remove two tomatoes and secure the bag and put back in freezer for the next time needed.






The two tomatoes will need to be rinsed with warm running water so as to take the skin off. It comes off very easy this way. Once rinsed, peeled, they are ready to be chopped. as in photo 4 and they are chopped frozen as they are.







Fresh tomatoes







Just chop them for your soups, sauces, rice, whatever food you use them to cook with. Remember they have been frozen, so they cannot be used for sandwiches, etc. Mainly for cooking.


Since I'm making rice today, I'm browning the rice, added onions, pureed garlic that I've made ahead of time, a little cumin and the tomatoes.
After I've browned I add a couple cans of chicken broth, salt and pepper and sometimes I add cilantro. When I don't have it, I don't add as is the case today.

I put the lid on and cook slowly in my dad's old pot. Dad had this pot for many many years and at one time it had a handle on each side and now only has one. I will use it forever because when I do, Dad is right there with me.


So if you grow tomatoes, don't be afraid to pick them, wash them, bag them, and freeze them for the winter. It works and I save a lot of money by not having to buy the canned tomatoes. It is a money saver. I promise. Have a great Sunday and try it out next year when you grow your tomatoes. Good Sunday to you.
VIVA THE TOMATO!!

NOW IS THE TIME FOR ALL GOOD PEOPLE TO ROAST SOME CHILI'S!! AYEEEEEEE!  OH AND OF COURSE FEED THE FAMILY PET MEMBER'S AND SMELL THE FLOWERS. THE CHILI'S SMELL A LOT BETTER. I OPEN ALL THE WINDOW AND LET THE SCENT OUT SO THAT THE NEIGHBORS CAN OOOH AND AAAAH. THEY DO. HAHAHAAHAH

It's kickback day today all day.Finished exercising earlier and then went to Office Depot and bought some photo software Adobe PhotoShop 7 and some old movies that were only 5 dollars each. Jane Austen's Persuasion, Da Vinci Code and Bonnie and Clyde the original. I thought that was a good deal. I was scanning some of their books and looking at pictures of rainbows and it reminded me of Israel, the singer who sang SomeWhere Over the Rainbow. He was from Hawaii and is now deceased, rest his soul. He sung it very well and with his heart. I first heard of him at one of my amiga's blog. You'll like him, I do. It's really an enjoyable video with the rainbows and the people all around and Israel singing. All about Family.



So today I will just probably play around with my new software and watch a movie. I haven't been doing any painting as of late, other than the skulls for El Dia. Just don't feel like painting right now. As I said before, painting for me is a fun thing to do and I do it when I feel the mood. I am beginning to visualize a black canvas though, not a white one, but black. Right now I keep thinking of that 3 wheeler bike with the basket in the back that I can almost feel myself riding. Before the year is out, I may just be riding a bike like this to exercise. Travel by car is 7 minutes and it's 3.58 miles while if I ride a bike I can save on gas and build muscle and burn calories. Sounds pretty good to me. What if someone yanks me off the bike and takes the bike though?? I worry about that! I worry too much, things do happen though. God will watch over me, I hope. I haven't even bought the bike and already my brain is thinking thinking and thinking. What am I going to do with MYSELF? Ayeeeeeeeee Viva La Vida!

Today is just one of those days. You know....the over the hump day or whatever it is called. I used to say that when I worked and for some reason still continue with the saying. After exercise I stopped at Walgreens to see if I could find the B12 melt in your mouth tablets and they didn't have them. I recently found these disolvable tablets and I prefer taking something like that as opposed to the "pills."

I'm not sure if I found them at Walgreens, CSU/Pharmacy or Walmart. I checked at the first two and they did have the brand but not the meltable lozenge type. So tomorrow after exercise I'll make my way to Walmart. I just ate some Cream of Wheat with a banana and a piece of toast and so now I  have to think about the things I'm doing today.

Paperwork, filing etc.
Finding an eye doctor, need new glasses, I have new insurance and he is not listed in their provider book.
Making appt with dentist
Work  on my Dia De Los Muertos ofrenda
Call mom, already did this.
Clean kitchen, move small table away from window and clean behind. We have a little nook in the kitchen with just enough room for a small table.
Unload dishwasher
Defrost nopales
Take a couple of frozen tomatoes out of freezer

Anyway, I am sure there is more to do than the above, you've seen my lists before and this one is a short one.

My esposo and I were talking at the table as we usually do. He asked me if I still wanted the french doors for my studio or if I prefered that he build me a 16x16 studio out in back. I of course was already figuring out the square footage which came out to about 253 sq. feet and picturing where the sink would go, etc. etc. etc. Very quietly I said, "Well, sounds like a great idea, but wouldn't it be too much work for you?" "No way!" was his reply. Immediately  he started calculating how much wood and cement he would need.

We are still in the thinking process and it sounds exciting to me. There are other more important things to take care of right now, like installing a wall furnace and a new vanity for the bathroom as well as flooring for the bathroom. These are on a smaller scale so we do have a little time to think about the studio. He actually would like to have the whole garage to himself. He says he would use the area I use for all his tools.

Now why am I boring you with all these little details when I know you have better things to do. I surely do appreciate that you stopped by and now I have to go do the things I listed above.

For dinner I am making nopales  with hamburger meat, onions, chili, tomatoes, garlic and probably some red chili powder, home made tortillas, and of course the beans. In this house beans are a must.
Stay safe, enjoy your life and Viva La Vida!

I love Diana Krall. Her voice is smooth and easy going. I hope you are all enjoying your Monday. Hubby is home today so we went out for breakfast, Home Depot and home. A new day, a new perspective and we do what we have to do to fill our lives with comfort, joy, and love. I'll be back later.

I LOVE MARIGOLDS AND HOW THEY SMELL. HAVE A GREAT SUNDAY!

I'm not a writer. When I blog I write about everyday things and other bits and pieces. There are times though when I feel the need to TRY  and write a short essay about something, anything, whatever......I guess it has to do with my English classes. So these thoughts have been going through my mind and I thought I'd put it to type.....Remember though, these are thoughts filling my head and not necessarily my dreams.


She had been having these dreams for a few weeks now, almost nightly it seemed. In one of the dreams, she was getting married to "HIM." He was late in arriving, but she knew when he got there. She felt his essence going through her being. It was intense this feeling they had for each other. The preacher was already there with bible in hand waiting patiently,  and "HE" finally arrived. HE turned to look at her with those deep dark eyes that penetrated her soul. They looked at each other and knew that the kiss would be like that kiss back when they first met in their early 20's.

They kissed in that dream and they kissed in the other dreams that she had been having lately. All the kisses brought back the heated memories of a day gone by. To her, this was the person who had ignited her soul, and after HIM there had been no other that had  been able to do that. When she would awaken and remember the dreams, she'd try to analyze them, but she couldn't figure out why she kept having these dreams of him. This haunted her and she wondered what was going on.

This one day after having the dream again, she had to find out about him and what had happened to him. The only way she could think of finding out about him was the internet  It had been decades since she last knew of him. So she did a search on the internet, nothing came up. Then she started thinking about checking the genealogical pages on Family Search. You enter the name and it does a search for you. The name came up unexpectedly. About 4 names but with different birth dates and different cities in California. Long Beach was the last place she knew of him to be and there before her stood his name, city,  and birthdate which she remembered. Then she read on and seen that there was another date, a death date, September 26, 2008.

For a moment she sat still not really taking it in or perhaps taking it in to a deeper level when she saw that last date. Here it was September 19, 2009  and the 26th was just a week away. Why? She double checked the birthdate, the city, the other 3 names which were not from the same city and then she knew. He had died and for some reason he was coming back to her in dreams to captivate that essence of yesteryear. He wanted her to know that he was no longer in this world.  She went numb but held the tears back. She had been contacted in her dreams by someone she had once loved and been loved by. "A love like this will never come again," is what he had last told her. Why did he take so long to contact her after his death, she would never know. She did know that next week she would light a candle for him and she also knew why she had been having those dreams. Her sadness seemed to echo all around her and she wondered if he'd be there tonight. THE END.


There is no spell checker on posting that I could find, so there may be mistakes. I know, I know....I couldn't help myself, I just had to type these thoughts. Viva La Dreams!

It was all the fence's fault, not mine. I won't get blamed for what happened. It was the fence that did it, or was it those clogs I had on? Well I gotta tell you, today was not an ordinary day. I went to exercise, that was ordinary, and then came home and had a wheat toast and a bowl of cheerios and found out that I was tired. It was about 9:30 am. I started to tidy up and said, heck with it!

I went back to bed and my friend Chocolatte followed me and jumped up on the bed with me. I put the TV on thinking I was going to watch it for a little while, closed my eyes a little and lo and behold, it was 1 pm when next I opened my eyes. I couldn't believe it, how could this have happened! I hadn't cleaned house, I had no plans on what to make for dinner and I glanced at Chocolatte and she was still sleeping.

I quickly emptied the trash, washed the dishes there  that were in the sink, straightened out the living room and realized that the house wasn't really dirty it just needed straightening out. So I slowed down, washed my hands, looked in the frig. and seen that I had egg roll wrappers so that would be dinner. White rice and vegetable egg rolls. Easy as pie.

So I went outside to water a few plants and decided to check my little garden and seen that water was needed. I had my clogs on, no support for the feet,  and went and got the hose and started to put one foot over the 2 foot or so wire fence we have there that keeps the family pet members out and my foot lost it balance???? How did that happen.

So I said NO!!!!!as I was going down and quickly glanced to the right where the space in the fence is slightly open and hoped if the neighbors were out there they wouldn't see me going down. I didn't have time to plan how I would land so that I wouldn't get hurt. My feet gave out under me, there was nothing to grab onto, I fell on my knees and they gave out, then my face hit the dirt and my elbows went crunch.

I lay there thinking and wondering how I was going to get up with my bad knees. I was flat on my face, turned around and somehow managed to pull myself up and looked at the hose just flooding everything and me oh so dirty and muddy. Why I could have drowned. Darn that fence, it wasn't me, it was IT who made me fall.
I'm okay though. A few weary bones. I should have had my cell phone in case I had gotten hurt. I might have been there the rest of the day till esposo got home or maybe the rest of my life. Ayeeeeeee! I am now starting to ache a little so I better go take a hot shower and go to bed. I wish you could have seen me- I take that back. Have a great weekend, be well and brother,
Viva La Vida!!!

JUST A QUICK NOTE THAT I DID NOT MAKE THE ALBONDIGAS YOU SEE IN THIS POST. THE COOK AND THE PHOTO TAKER ARE LISTED ALONGSIDE THE PHOTO. I DON'T WANT TO TAKE CREDIT FOR SOMEONE ELSE'S CREATION SO I WAS SURE TO INCLUDE THEIR NAMES.

I make my own Albondigas, always have and always will. Now that I am back to using my Weight by Date Pro, I had to come up with the nutrients for albondigas since they didn't have that food in the database. I really am surprised by the nutrients that albondigas provides but also surprised by the calories and calories from fat. I thought I'd share this with you. I copied this recipe from Allrecipes and I pretty much make it the same way except that I use beef broth instead of water. These are not my albondigas, but are from the recipe that was on Allrecipes. The authors name is provided. I also had to find the nutrients and calories for homemade flour tortillas and was surprised that one flour tortilla is 167 calories and that the calories from fat are 57. I guess that's a problem when one makes homemade tortillas. I'm planning on getting a bike and adding bicycle riding to my exercise regimen. Have a great Thursday and be well and nice and full. Hee/Haw....Viva la Tortilla! and the albondigas!

Albondigas SUBMITTED BY: Belen PHOTO BY: SunFlower

"This is a quick and easy recipe that tastes delicious. Carrots and potatoes, with salsa and meatballs, makes for a hearty, delicious soup that can be prepared in no time at all."
RECIPE RATING:
Read Reviews (105) Review/Rate This Recipe
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PREP TIME 20 Min
COOK TIME 20 Min
READY IN 40 Min

.SERVINGS (Help)
Servings

US METRIC
.INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

1 quart water

4 carrots, sliced

2 small potatoes, peeled and diced

1 medium onion, diced

1 1/2 cups salsa, medium or hot

2 beef bouillon cubes

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

1/3 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs

1/3 cup milk

chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

.DIRECTIONS
1.In a large stock pot, bring water, carrots, potatoes, onion, salsa, and bouillon cubes to a boil. Reduce to a medium simmer, stirring occasionally, approximately 10 minutes.

2.Mix the beef, breadcrumbs, and milk together in a bowl. Form into 1-inch meatballs, and drop into boiling broth. Once soup returns to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low.

3.Cover and cook 20 minutes, or until meatballs are no longer pink in center and vegetables are tender. Serve with sprinkled cilantro for garnish.


AlbondigasSUBMITTED BY: Belen


DETAILED NUTRITION

Serving Size 1/6 of a recipe

Servings Per Recipe 6
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Amount Per Serving

Calories 327

Calories from Fat 153
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                    % Daily Value *

Total Fat 17g       26 %

Saturated Fat 6.6g  33 %

Cholesterol 72mg   24 %

Sodium 839mg       34 %

Potassium 739mg   21 %

Total Carbohydrates 20.8g   7 %

Dietary Fiber 3.4g   13 %

Protein 22.6g          45 %

** Sugars 4.7g

Vitamin A 238 %

Vitamin C 34 %

Calcium 9 %

Iron 33 %

Thiamin 14 %

Niacin 79 %

Vitamin B6 29 %

Magnesium 16 %

Folate 22 %
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.



So there it is for those of you who make Albondigas
(yaya and gloria) It's a shocker but I just ate one bowl.

It's been a very nice day with a cool breeze and the type of weather that Fall will provide. There is always a quietness about fall and I love quiet. I remember last summer writing about how the neighbors music could be heard quite loud from where we were at. By neighbors I mean they were maybe a good 3 houses away. Now things are winding down and I feel that way too.

I spent part of the day cleaning out the same area where my Ofrenda will be. Washed it down really good, got rid of cob webs and little bugs, used my blower to blow out all the dust and then hosed it down and wiped with a cloth.

Just looking at this area reminds me of last years Dia de Los Muertos. I wonder if it is okay to also have pictures of departed friends as well as family. If someone knows the answer to this, please let me know. I'm thinking of asking Steve if I can add Mr. Jiggs picture. He, Mr. Jiggs wasn't family but he was a friend, be it through the vastness of cyberspace.

So I leave you with my video and with a little poem I wrote once upon a blue moon. I remember looking at the falling leaves at this time of the year and feeling a lonliness for them because life was over for them. How silly is that? So my mind was on that thought and I wrote this:

The leaves are falling, falling, falling.
The wind is blowing, blowing, blowing.
I hear you calling, calling, calling.
I miss you my love.
***************
And that's it. I wasn't missing anyone, I was just feeling for the leaves. Go figure!
but remember:
Viva La Vida!

Just some pictures from the nursery. I've got to clean house so I don't have time to post much  of anything. Plus this new deal Blogger has added isn't so great after all.  look at the way it is causing me to type, Well you can't see it, but right now as I type one of the pictures is moving to the right and now I've jumped to the top and now I'm at the bottom typing and the picture is going to the right and now I'm at the top now at the bottom and watch it go to the top again. Heck forget it!! I'm not posting nothing. Enjoy the picture. See here I go again.