Sunday, July 31, 2016

Coffee. Wine. Blue Corn Chips.


Yep. It's the last day of July. Sunday. How often do we start the first of the month on a Monday, right? I'm determined. Very, very determined. I have a stack of notes, to-do lists, deadlines and stuff to catch up on. Tomorrow is Monday. I'm giving myself until end of day on Sunday to get everything caught up and, hopefully, a little ahead. Why? Lisa's is taking a full week of vacation the 2nd week of August.

Saturday, July 30, 2016

It's Not About The Payoff. It's All About The Journey.


Tomorrow is the last day of July. We've already passed our 1 year Anniversary of this blog. The first post was July 3rd of 2015.  For most of that year, the blog wasn't public. We launched "officially" on June 3rd of this year. The response has been really great. There's still so much to do. And, we're getting there. Things have slowed down a bit the past few weeks as I took on a month-long freelance job. That is ending soon. I'll be back on track with creating new dog treat recipes and cool DIY Dog Mom Projects and lots of other great stuff. In addition, we're making changes on the Bodacious Biscuit Love end of things.

Friday, July 29, 2016

Evolution. Good Stuff. Not So Good Stuff. The Conclusion. Well, Sort Of...


It has started. The ball is rolling. After almost 3 years since the launch of Bodacious Biscuit Love, we are making some changes. I call it evolution. Growing pains. The good stuff. The not so good stuff. It's a collective mix of the past 3 years, the months, the weeks, and every single day. Long overdue. We're excited. A little nervous. Bursting at the seams. Some of these changes have already taken place. Most, however, are yet to come. Change is good. This is good.

Thursday, July 28, 2016

The Past 4 Years Have Been Quite The Journey


Today, Lisa and I are celebrating our 4 year wedding anniversary. We met almost 20 years ago. A year prior to our wedding, after over 10 years of being separated, we stood face to face at the airport. Older. Wiser. Vulnerable. Nervous. The universe had shifted. Did a lil’ shimmy shake. Fate stepped in. There we were.

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Random Rant: Someday, You're Going To Get Old Too


I got angry this evening. Really, really angry. The kind of anger that makes me pace around the house doing angry housework while I rant and rave...arms flying everywhere because I talk with my hands. I try not to get angry at the stuff I read online or across on my social media streams. After almost a decade of working in the virtual world, you'd think I would be desensitized. Nope. Tonight was proof. I saw a post on Facebook and I got angry.

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Our Vacations Is Planned. Or Not.


Yesterday I mentioned that Lisa will be taking a full week of vacation in August. It's the first time she's taken a week off since our wedding 4 years ago. This evening, after dinner, while Lisa did dishes and I sat at the table entertaining our kids, Lisa asked if there was something special I'd like to do that week.

Monday, July 25, 2016

Lisa Will Be Home For Nine Days. Nine. Whole. Days.


Last month, Lisa put in for a week long vacation in August. Although she gets 3 weeks paid vacation a year, she hasn't taken a full week off since our wedding 4 years ago. This was before we adopted Coco. During those 4 years, she takes a vacation day or two, here and there, paired up with a weekend. Or, she uses vacation days for celebratory occasions like birthdays or our anniversary.

Saturday, July 23, 2016

The Past Few Days Have Been Great. That Almost Didn't Happen.


Back in February, plans were made for yesterday and today. In May, that all changed. Although life went on, I was very aware that yesterday and today we almost participated in "today's event" and it would have occupied our every moment over the past couple of days. At the end of the day, as I viewed the photos that plastered my news feed of this event, I was relieved that we didn't waste our time, money and everything between.

Friday, July 22, 2016

I Refuse To Move Them. It's Their Sofa Too.


I absolutely love our home office. It's the largest of the 3 bedrooms. Front of the house. Two windows. Enough room for a huge bookshelf, large desk, medium desk, and love seat. It's decorated beautifully. There's plenty of light from the 2 windows. My desk faces the door leading into the living room. I have a couple of options if I want to look up and see the outside. And, our kids lounge on the love seat so I almost always have company.

Thursday, July 21, 2016

Evolution Is A Beautiful Thing


A year ago, right around this time, I was putting together a birthday celebration for Lisa that would take place at another location and shared with a group of people. Our Bodacious Biscuit Love event calendar was booked almost solid. We were tentatively planning our Fall Bodacious Biscuit Love Yard & Bake Sale. I was baking almost every day of the week whether biscuits for raffle baskets or cookies and cupcakes for this or that. We declined many invites from one of our neighbor friends, who has become family, to swim in her pool. Not once did Lisa fire up our grill. We didn't take timeouts to enjoy the company of our neighbor friends. I was catering to many people who, eventually, would drop us like hot potatoes once we stood our ground, they had no use for us or when I hinted that relationships were 2-ways streets. The list goes on.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

We Need To Work Together And Network


I received an email from a sweet human the other day. She had a couple of questions about feeding her newly adopted pup fresh produce, food allergies and what foods are safe and those that aren't. Eventually, she wanted to convert to all homemade meals and treats and ditch the store bought. I wrote back in length about our experience, what we feed our kids, reference links, and I told her to talk to her veterinarian before she made any major dietary changes. That's always included in my replies.

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Drizzle The Swizzle And Sprinkle The Sprinkles


For the longest time, I referred to the "drizzle" on our biscuits as "swizzle." The word swizzle was fun and seemed more fitting. I still use it even though the correct definition of swizzle is an unshaken cocktail, an alcoholic cocktail made with gin or rum or the swizzle stick you use to stir a drink. Whatever term you opt to use, swizzle or drizzle, you can add it to any of our homemade dog treat recipes. It's delicious. And, addicting.

Monday, July 18, 2016

Our Porch Of Produce And Bob's Garden


For the past few years, we've had a Porch of Produce. Basically, it's container gardening. On the porch. We've grown squash, tomatoes, peppers, beans, cucumbers, and herbs. It's been a lot of trial and error. This year, we're discovering that cucumbers don't do well in smaller containers and we probably should have thinned out the plants. On the other end of the stick, our peppers are doing incredible. Best year yet.

Sunday, July 17, 2016

It's Not Edible. What Were We Thinking?!


Yesterday we made the half-hour drive to the Woodstock Fairgrounds to check out the Summer Celebration event. There were vendors, flea market items, fun stuff for human kids, pony rides, a band, etc. We wanted to check out the vendors and flea market and to show our support for the 2 women we know who participated in the event. We went early. It was miserable outside and we didn't stay long.

Saturday, July 16, 2016

An Update On The DIY Mini Platform Bed


On June 30th I wrote a post about the DIY mini platform bed that we were making for the kids. I'ts more for Lobo, but we know Coco and Sophie will use it too. My goal was to start working on it that weekend, however, Lisa and I had our neighbor friend over for dinner a couple of times and we spent a day dippin' and sippin' in her pool. The following weekend...same thing. Amid all of this, I took on a month-long freelance project. What I'm trying to say is that the supplies are still sitting in the biscuit room.

Friday, July 15, 2016

Mother Nature Had Other Plans


It takes a lot for me to plan an evening of unwind time whether it's having our neighbor friends over or going to their house across the street. The operative words are across the street. We're close to home. We check in frequently. We can keep an eye on our home. This was our plan earlier today. Dip and sip with our neighbor friend. Fire up the grill. Enjoy dinner together. Outdoors. Picnic table.

Thursday, July 14, 2016

Our Kids Don't Have To Win Awards To Be Remarkable


I got a decent and much needed chuckle today. I was talking to a friend of mine who has a really cool human kid. My friend went on and told me that she had persuaded him to go to a week long summer camp that focused on sports. The whole idea was to introduce kids to various sports so they could determine what they were interested in. Two days into camp, her son told her he was having a miserable time and the highlight of camp was the food.

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

10 Reasons Why I'm Convinced My Midlife "Crisis" Is...Here


The other day, I suspected I was going through my midlife crisis and it had started shortly after turning 40. I didn't go into too much detail. I needed to think about it first. Really, really think about it. And I have. After much thought, and closely examining various changes and pivotal moments over the past 2 years, I've come to the conclusion that yes...this is midlife crisis. I've also concluded that in no way, shape, or form does it fall into the category of being a "crisis." In fact, this period in my life has been pretty great.

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

We Raised Our Glasses To Four Years And Many More!



Today we're celebrating 4 incredible years in our home. Yesterday, we delivered homemade cupcakes to some of our neighbors who, over the years, have become friends and family. After Lisa mowed the lawn this afternoon, we enjoyed takeout pizza. We always have pizza on July 12th to honor the meal we ate in the U-Haul 4 years ago. We were sweaty. Stinky. Dirty. That was after 8 hours of loading everything into the U-Haul during a miserable heatwave.

Monday, July 11, 2016

Today We Delivered A Little Sweet And Scrumptious Gratitude


I made cupcakes today for 3 reasons. The first, to commemorate our 4 year anniversary of living in our home. The second, to extend some sweet gratitude to some of our neighbors who have become friends and family to us. The third, 2 of these neighbors are leaving tomorrow and won't be back until the weekend. That's right. The cupcakes I had planned on making tomorrow ended up getting baked and distributed today.

Sunday, July 10, 2016

This Is What Happens When Lisa Eats Breakfast


Lisa gets up at 3:45 a.m. Monday through Friday. On the weekends, it's a bit later. Regardless of whether it's a weekday or the weekend, she eats her breakfast on the bed. I sit on the bed too. It's a tradition. And, this is always the scene. Always.

Saturday, July 9, 2016

My All Time Favorite Pound Cake Recipe


When I was a kid, strawberry shortcake was one of my favorite desserts. Back then, our strawberry shortcake consisted of a Sara Lee pound cake, thaw and serve sweetened strawberries and Cool Whip. In the here and now, strawberry shortcake is still a favorite of mine, however, I don't rely on store bought or thaw and serve. I make homemade pound cake and macerate fresh strawberries.

Friday, July 8, 2016

Okay, Who Did It?


One of my pet peeves are blankets and pillows on the floor. I'm not sure why this bothers me so much. I'm one who can drop a Triscuit on the floor and, after picking off a strand or two of fur, can eat it without a second thought.

Thursday, July 7, 2016

I Was Oddly Satisfied By The Email I Sent. Midlife Crisis?


A few weeks ago I had sent an email to my "boss" explaining that I needed a little time off from writing structured columns. There were a few other things I addressed. I waited. And waited. Nothing. Life went on. On Tuesday I received an email from my "boss." By the way, he's cool. I like him. He gets my warped sense of humor and our back-and-forth banter reflects that.

Wednesday, July 6, 2016

Our DIY Hand Dipped Strawberries Are Fun, Festive And Super Easy To Make


At least a half dozen people have reached out inquiring about the dipped strawberries I made for Sophie's 2 Year Gotcha Day. After posting the recipe for the homemade Blueberry Cupcakes With Buttercream Frosting, I forgot to add a post about the strawberries. I have no shame in admitting I'm a dork at times. Total. Dork. Moment.

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

To Those Who Are Shooting Off Illegal Fireworks, Please Stop.


We spent the entire Fourth of July weekend at home. We'll be doing the same this coming weekend as well. The Fourth of July festivities start before the actual holiday and well after. The noises frighten our kids. I spent most of Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday evening holding Sophie while massaging her back. Lobo ran from one room to the other, barking, until his single hind leg was unable to support his anxiety ridden zoomies. We took turns holding him. Coco was restless. Up. Down. Up. Down. That was the scene for most of the weekend. Tonight too. It'll go on throughout the week and upcoming weekend.

Monday, July 4, 2016

These Cranberry White Chip Cookies Are Out Of This World


The first time I tried a cranberry white chip cookie was years ago at a party. The ones I tried had macadamia nuts in 'em. Delicious! I knew they'd be super easy to make. It was simply a matter of adding the correct ratio of dried cranberries and white chips to the base cookie dough I've been using for over 30 years. After a few tries, I nailed it.

Sunday, July 3, 2016

My Entire Day Was Planned. A Flawless Day. Or, So I Thought.


It's almost midnight and I'm having a nightcap. This morning, I had my entire day planned out. A flawless day. It's Sunday. The middle of a 3 day holiday weekend. My plans were to tackle some work stuff, write a blog post and get ready to have our beautiful friend over for dinner. I had lemon cakes in the oven. White chocolate slowly melting. Homemade bread rising on top of the stove. I exhaled too soon. Lisa ran a quick errand and came home with a worried stricken face. From that point on, things didn't exactly go as planned.

Saturday, July 2, 2016

We Spent Over 20 Minutes Picking Out Collars For The Kids


On Thursday, Lisa and I ran our errands. Grocery shopping. An impromptu trip to Home Depot to buy supplies for our next DIY Dog Mom Project. And, we made a stop at Pet Valu in Norwich. The weekend before and after Fourth of July is hard on our kids. We wanted to stock up on Bully Sticks and antlers. They love 'em and it distracts them a bit from the noises.

Friday, July 1, 2016

Our Family Loves This Homemade Zucchini Bread Recipe


Every summer we receive an abundance of zucchini. I love any type of squash and it's a summer staple in this household. Despite how many times I serve it up throughout the week for our family, there's still a ton of it left. I chop some up to freeze for winter soups and the rest of it I use for zucchini bread. I've been using this recipe for several decades and it's both pup and human friendly. Lisa loves it. I love it. Our kids love it.