In like a lion, out like a lamb. March 2013

Ah sigh..... it's Easter........ it's Spring......the sun is shining!!!!!  Holy bajesus I'm happy about this.  March was my recharge month.  After such a shitty winter, I really needed this month to give me that boost I was looking for.  It went by in the blink of an eye.

I made some SUPER good grapefruit creamsicles.  I don't think anything would be bad mixed with ice cream.  Maybe soy sauce?

I visited the Kasha-Katuwe tent rocks in New Mexico.  Oh my gosh..... SO cool.

Took a little long weekend trip over to Idaho to visit Jerdy's brother. 

I used some magic and painted these flowers green for St. Patty's.  Also made my first home cured corned beef and cabbage!  Devoured too quickly for pics. :)

Visited both Madrid and Santa Fe New Mexico! 

Set some new goals for myself to make Spring the best EVA!

Experienced the Bandelier cave dwellings.  Phenomenal.

Aaaaaaaand, I got to see Jesse Pinkman's house.  Like, 8 times, just to be sure it was real.  It was.  People actually live in it.  Didn't stop me from snapping a pic with candy blue meth.

I loved March!!!  SO much traveling and sightseeing.  I've actually still got my favorite sightseeing day from New Mexico left to share, Kitchen Mesa.  I'm crossing my fingers this sunshine sticks around, and a jobby pops up for me real soon.

Have a wonderful April friends.  Cheers to April!  Wahoo!

Trish

Jennifer's homemade doggie treats

SATURDAY!!!!!!!  BOOYAH!!!!

I'm actually off in lala land down in Shelton at the beach house (I feel like such a snobby bitch whenever I say that!) that our wedding will be.  You know, measuring, thinking, planning, chillaxin.

I've got Jennifer here from Grits and Moxie here for a RAD little tute.  This chick is one my fave bloggers, so if you don't know her, get on it!   You won't regret it.  I'm also guesting on hers with some delicious little goodies.  Here's a little peek:

Pop on over and say hi!!!

I present to you, the coolest of cats, Jennifer!:

Hello everyone!  I'm Jennifer and I blog over at Grits And Moxie, and I'm thrilled that Trish suggested we do a swaperoo on DIY posts.  She's doing a special vegan treat over at m'blog and today I'm here to share something that will make your furry companions pretty doggone happy...

These simple treats are quick and easy to make, and if you use all-natural ingredients then they'll be a helluva lot more healthy for your pets than many store bought concoctions.  Plus, they're pretty darn cheap too!  And when you have 4 dogs like I do, it's nice to balance quality and budget.

Let's get started, shall we?

First, let's gather the goods!

You can cut your treats into cute shapes, yes, but the terrible nail polish (yikes!) and duck lips (where the HECK did that come from!?!) are definitely not required...

2 1/2 cups of flours
1/2 cup of quick cook oats
1/2 cup of peanut butter
1 cup of hot water
2-3 T of oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Cream together the peanut butter, hot water and oil until smooth.  Stir in flour and oats, and knead well.  Turn out onto floured surface and then roll until 1/4 to 1/2 inch think.  Cut into strips or squares (a pizza cutter works wonders for this method), or use a cookie cutter for specific shapes.  Place onto lightly greased pan.  You can place the pieces close together because they maintain their shape throughout the cooking process.

 

Bake for about 20 minutes in the preheated oven.

Allow to cool on pan for 1-2 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack.  Don't serve to your pets until they are completely cool!   

The beauty of these treats is that you can make them as simple or as complicated as you want.  You can substitute chicken/turkey/beef stock instead of water.  Throw in some fresh chopped meat of choice for an extra kick.  Or, keep them just like they are.  The choice is yours!

My pups love these crisp but chewy cookies.  Really!

See?  Ms. Tullah Belle absolutely adores (um, freaks out!) over them...

And they keep wonderfully well with a shelf-life of around 4-6 weeks if kept in a sealed container.  Although mine never last very long!  I give them as gifts and for everyday treats to my pack of hungry wolves chihuahuas...

A big thanks to Trish for having me on the blog today...and a big thanks to all you who stopped by and read my recipe.  I hope you liked it!  Please feel free to direct any questions my way and to visit G&M to find out more about my life in Athens, GA as a baker, a critter companion, a feminist reader, a fledgling photographer and a seeker of happiness...

Oh my gosh Jennifer, I have ALWAYS wanted to make my own dog treats.  Seriously, I should get off my lazy booty and do it already.  Thank you so much for swapping posts!!!

Bye friends!

Trish

Furry Fridays guest post

Hey friends!

I'm guest posting over at A Geek in Glasses and B is for Becky about this classy lady right here:

Come pop by and say hi to Stephanie and Becky!

Trish

A song for Thursday {Lust for Life}

By Girls.

"i wish i had a pizza and a bottle of wine."

Bandelier cave dwellings

More from my super cool trip!!!

We decided to take a really gorgeous scenic drive through Jemez Pueblo, and up and over Jemez Mountain on our way to the Bandelier cave dwellings.  Oh. My. Freakin. Gosh.  It was really really neat.  A day of desert, snow, petroglyphs, and ancient caves where people actually lived.

This is Meghan and I, when we first got there.  Sunny and snowing!!  Totally blew my mind.

 

Meghan peeking from inside a dwelling

 

This was the only shot I got of the actual city ruins!  Can you see them?  Sort of left middle?  Looks like the right side of a triple circular flat ladder?  

 

Tall guy Nat.  Having to lay down in these short caves.

 

Short me.  The perfect height for the walls. :)

 

This was a weaving cave.  Made me feel SUPER lazy.

 

The walk through the city ruins was so beautiful.  I've never seen anything like it.

 

Can you spot the petroglyphs?  There are a handful of little carved faces.

 

 Can you spot the ceremonial cave WAY the hell up there in this one???  Look to the right of Meghan, then scroll up the pic.  Holy crap that was huge, and high.

 

Cool.

 

 This was such a rad day!!!  I'm so glad I got to experience this place.  Mind=blown.

Trish

This girl's goals {Spring 2013}

Spring is finally here!!!!!! Yippee!!!!

I am uber pumped for Spring guys.  I am soooooo done with winter.  It put a seriously bad taste in my mouth.

Smallest lips EVA! Proof above.  With the biggest teeth.  Thanks parents!

Well, since I didn't do anything but sit on my lazy ass this past winter, my spring goals are super similar to my winter goals.  I have to make them happen this time though.  My wedding is only 5 months away (gasp!), and if I don't find a job soon I'm going to be eating cans of beans under the freeway.  SOOOO........ I need to get on it.  STAT!

1. Finish planning my wedding:
This one is SO important!  Now that I look back, Jared and I actually did get a lot of this done this winter.  There is still so much to do though, and if we don't finish planning this spring, we won't have time for all the DIY details I want to do the few months before.  What's left is the boring stuff... renting chairs and tents, measuring the space, Organizing timing, blah blah blah.  Can't I just skip this and go on to making playlists and DIY decorating??? 

2. Make some moolah:
#2 of my winter goals was to take some time off and then find a job that didn't eat my soul.  Well, I took the time off, too much time.  Now, I don't have a choice.  A job that eats my soul will have to do until I can find one that doesn't.  I hate money.  Well...... not having an endless supply of it anyways.  Why can't I make a ton of money selling popsicles and infused liquor????  Oh yeah, that takes money.

3. Commit to the Queen Anne Stairclimb:
Near my apartment are at least 20 different outdoor stair cases, each with about 50 stairs.  Rather than committing to a strenuous workout that I know I won't finish, or some crazy low daily calorie count that I'll only follow 3 times a week, I'm going to climb these damn stairs.  Even if it's only one of the staircases, I'm going to climb them every day.  So far, it's worked, for about a week.  I've only made it up one staircase  at a time, but by the end I hope to be able to make it up all of them.  There are a total of about 300 steps only a block or so from my house, and the rest are a bit further.  About an hour of going up and down stairs in the end.  For now, I'm gonna try to master those 300.  Then I'll get to the rest.  Like a badass!

4. Spend more time with family and friends:
I spent a lot of time alone this winter.  After traveling a lot the first half of March, I realized how much I really miss everyone I love.  I became really depressed last fall, and I sort of just gave up and wallowed for too long.  I'm ready to get off my booty and enjoy life again.  Cheesy, yes, but very real.  I need to be the change I want to see in my life, and a big part of that change is being around my friends and fam. 

Well.......... that's all I got.  It's Monday.... and I need to find myself a job.  Like, this week.

Trish

Ad swap in April???

I love meeting new bloggers!!!  Wanna swap buttons???

Just clickety clack that "sponsor jellybones" button at the top, or pop on over here to get started.  I am overjoyed with how quickly this little bloggie is growing, and I can't wait to meet more peeps.  I've got a lot in store for April, and I hope you'll be a part of it.  If you have questions, you can always email me at jellybonesblog@gmail.com.

Have a great Sunday! 

Trish

Stupendous Saturday {3/23/13}

ah Instagram..... making my photos more beautiful since 2011.

The last weeks have been RAD!  So much traveling and new sights.  Here are some goodies my trusty phone companion managed to capture.

Margaritas, on my first day in New Mexico.  SO pumped for the sunshine.

Meghan and Nat, being judged by the Virgin Guadalupe for being a little buzzed.

Old Town, Albuquerque

Just my size

A little walk in Jemez Pueblo, and Nat rockin a sweet poncho.

The view from the car on a drive over Jemez mountain.  Little different than the red rocky desert below huh? 

Old Town, again

High Noon Saloon.

Meghan and I being cool.

Lastly, this is me.  In front of Jesse Pinkman's house.  With a small baggie of pure blue meth cooked by Heisenburg himself.  Or....... cooked by the candy lady at the candy store.

Want to follow me on Instagram??  Go here and follow!  @jellyjellybones.

What an amazing couple of weeks.  I got to spend some quality time with my best friend, and enjoy some sunshine in the wild wild west.  YES!

Happy weekend friends.

Trish

Madrid and Santa Fe, New Mexico

Happy Friday friends!!!!

First off, I want to give a big shout out to Heidi for nominating me for a Liebster award.  Thanks so much Heidi!  I've already done the Liebster a few times, so I'm gonna pass the torch, but I am always amazed at how supportive the blogging community is.  Seriously ladies.  I love ya!

I'm still sorting through pics of my vacation down to New Mexico, and thought I'd share some favorites from day 2.  After hiking the awesomely phallic tent rocks on day 1, We took a long drive down the Turquoise Trail to Santa Fe, stopping in Madrid.  Yes, Madrid.  Pronounced like baaaa-drid.  Like a sheep noise.  ha!

Here are some photos of Madrid.  This teeny town town is super rad.  Just a small (like one street small) artist community with a surreal midwestern feel to it.   Historically, Madrid has been known for having one of the brightest Christmas displays in the world.  It's even where Walt Disney got his inspiration for early Disneyland.

 

Santa Fe was a bit disappointing, because the weather decided to piss sleet all over us.  It was so windy we couldn't even be outside.  We made the best of it, by eating and hopping into little shopping centers, and I managed to get a couple of shots within the first hour of being there before the weather went nuts.  Santa Fe is like being transported into a movie where everything is adobe style.  EVERYTHING!  I think it's a law or something.  Super neat little place, and someday I'll go back when it's not 1 of the ZERO days a year it rains there.

I've got a handful more days to share!  Still some ancient cliff dwellings and Kitchen Mesa.  Stay tuned!

Trish

Quinoa and veggie quesadillas

Guys...... I've got a confession.  I'm a cheese hound.  I LOVE cheese.  Always have.  But...... boy does my booty hate it.  Especially when I'm trying to shed pesky pounds for my wedding.  Or you know, be healthy or whatever.  Enter...... the quinoa and veggie quesadilla.

 

To be honest, I wouldn't call this healthy.  But the added veggies and quinoa sure do make that slutty quesadilla we all know and crave a whole lot healthiER!  

Here are your ingredients, for about 5 small quesadillas

1/2 cup dry quinoa

1 TB olive oil

1 cup onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 cup broccoli, chopped

1 cup kale, chopped

1 jalapeno, chopped with seeds

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated

1 TB cumin

1 tsp salt

1 TB pepper

10 small corn or flour tortillas

 

Directions:

Cook your quinoa, according to package directions.  If you have bulk, usually you rinse the quinoa, and place in a sauce pan with twice as much water as quinoa.  1/2 cup quinoa with 1 cup water.  Bring to a boil for 15 minutes or until water is absorbed.  Take off heat, cover, and let sit for 5 minutes.  Fluff with fork.

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet and saute onion.  About 3 minutes.  Add garlic and veggies and saute until broccoli is al dente, about 10 minutes. Take off heat.

In a large bowl, mix together cooked quinoa, veggie mixture, grated cheese, and spices.  Place mixture atop 5 small tortillas, and top with another tortilla, to create 5 whole quesadillas.  Grill in your skillet to brown tortilla and melt cheese, about 2-3 minutes on each side.

 

Serve hot with some homemade chili sauce (I've got a delish recipe for this stuff coming your way soon!) or salsa.  No sour cream for this lady, but avocado would have rocked.

 

 The quinoa actually really works in this dish!  It sort of melts into the cheese, which I like because quinoa can be pretty bland.  

Now, I'm off to start climbing some stairs near my apartment, 330 in total.  Ugh.  Trying to get this done every day though. :)  Wish me luck.

Have a great Wednesday night friends!

Trish