From Huskies To Husbands

I can not believe that 2008 is almost gone already!!  Where did this year go??  It seems like only yesterday that it was Summer.

It was warmer here in Wyoming today and more of our snow melted away which is good and bad - LOL!  I really hope that the weather holds out through the new year.  We are going to be traveling on both the 31st and the 1st to go visit with friends to ring in the new year!

Still dealing with the crud as I am calling whatever this is that has settled into my chest, sinuses, and throat.  I did manage to get 30 minutes in on the Wii Fit though still!!  I am so proud of myself for keeping at it even though I am not feeling well.

Since I will not be able to post tomorrow - Happy New Year to everyone!!!  May it be filled with love, happiness, and health!

When I pretty much got laid off from work my first thought was “Give them enough rope and they will hang themselves.”  Meaning let the rest of them work and be on the schedule and lets wait and see how long it takes before they start not showing up for shifts, and basically not getting the work done.  Well, it didn’t take long for it to happen.  Just less than 2 weeks actually.  I have worked 3 out of the last 4 days.  2 of those days 6 hour shifts where I got called in to take over for someone and 1 of them a full 8 hour shift where the girl called in sick the night before.  I am actually on the schedule for the morning of the 31st, but have no idea what the schedule for January is going to be like yet.

I just wish that I felt better and that this crud wasn’t making me feel miserable - sore throat, sinus headache, coughing, body aches, and my IBS acting up because of it all. 

We need to go into town tomorrow so I hope that everyone shows up for work and that the weather cooperates!  I also hope that I am feeling a lot better tomorrow too.  :)

The Wii Fit is just too much fun.  :)  You really don’t even realize that you are burning calories and getting a work out in as you spend the whole time laughing!!  I have been trying to get in between 30 minutes and 1 hour each day since we got it.  Life got in the way 1 day so far and not feeling well might cut things short today too.  :(

I seem to have caught some miserable sinus/respiratory thing and my IBS is really acting up.  :(  Basically I feel terrible.  I eneded up getting called into “work” again yesterday again due to someone else not feeling like coming in to work their shift.  I fell asleep at like 8 pm last night and slept until about 8 am this morning and I took a nap after we got home from church too!  I probably needed the rest though as I have not been sleeping well for about 2 weeks now.

It is insanely windy here today and COLD too!  The forecast is calling for a big snow storm on Thursday, but the sky looks like we could have one any moment.  I hope that the weather is good on Wednesday and Thursday though as we plan on heading out of town to see some friends to ring in the new year.

I ended up getting called into “work” today as one of the girls didn’t show up for her shift.  I didn’t really want to go, but I figured I had better take the hours where I can get them!  It wasn’t too bad considering

I played on my new Wii Fit yesterday for over an hour!  It was a lot of fun and some of the activities that I tried out were hard!  I think that it is going to be a great way for me to get a workout in without realizing that I am really working out.  Now to get some more games that work with the Wii Fit Board besides the initial game that comes with it!  It was cute that DH played with my new toy before I got to even.  He is enjoying it as well which is a good thing since he needs to improve his level of fitness too.

I hope that today - the day after Christmas - has been a good one for you all!

So in my last blog I mentioned how un-Christmas like this holiday season has felt, even with all the decorations.

Well, I seem to have found my CHRISTmas spirit again!!  At the last moment mind you - LOL!  I finally found my CHRISTmas spirit at our CHRISTmas Eve service at church.  I needed to be hard core reminded that CHRISTmas really is all about the BIRTH of CHRIST.  Not about the presents.  Not about the food.  Not even about being with family and/or friends.  About the BIRTH of JESUS CHRIST the RISEN SAVIOUR!!!  Maybe that was why Christmas didn’t feel like CHRISTmas - I was focusing on all the wrong things to begin with…

Our actual CHRISTmas day was nice though too.  I was woke up by a phone call from my Dad so that he could wish me a Merry Christmas.  Then I called my cousin who is in Germany and wished them a Merry Christmas.  Then we went over to the In-laws and opened presents over there with MIL, FIL, BIL, SIL and our adorable niece.  Then we all came over here and opened presents too.  Then everyone went home for a while.  We made some more phone calls to thank everyone for the gifts and I cooked for like 6 hours straight!!  LOL  But it was fun for me and I enjoyed doing it!  DH played with my new Wii Fit for a while which I got as a present from the in-laws while I was cooking.  I also got to use my new microwave with grilling feature from my BIL and SIL while preparing dinner!  Then we ate our fill of food and nobody saved room for dessert at all.  Our niece played with our dogs and they both loved having a child in the house to love on.  Then everyone went home and I cleaned up and put the TONS of leftovers away!

One of the things that I remember being on the table at every traditional holiday dinner in my Polish family is Poor Man’s Pierogies.  Here is my verison which is dairy-free and otherwise healthied up a little.
Dairy Free Poor Man’s Pierogies

10 oz whole wheat lasagna noodles, precooked
5 lbs yukon gold potatoes, cubed with skin on
6 tbs vegan butter spread
1 cup chicken broth
4 medium onions, sliced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp seasoning salt
1 lb bacon, chopped
10 oz follow your heart vegan gourmet cheddar, shredded
5 oz follow your heart vegan gourmet mozzarella, shredded

In a skillet cook the chopped bacon until crisp.
Using a slotted spoon so that most of the renderings remain in the skillet transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towel to drain.
In the same skillet saute the onions and garlic until caramelized.
Boil the potatoes.
Mash the potatoes with the vegan butter spread, seasoning salt, black pepper, and chicken broth.
Once mostly mashed add in 1/2 of the shredded cheeses.
In a 9 x 13 baking pan lightly sprayed with cooking spray begin layering.
Start by laying down a layer of lasagna noodles.
Next add a layer of mashed potatoes (about 1/3 of the mixture).
Then add a layer of sauted onions (about 1/3 of the mixture).
Then sprinkle on a layer of the bacon (about 1/3).
Top that with a layer of the shredded cheeses (about 1/4).
Add another layer of the lasagna noodles and continue as above ending with a layer of lasagna noodles topped with cheese.
Bake at 350 for 30 to 45 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the casserole is hot and bubbly on the edges.

I hope that if you try this that you enjoy it as much as my family does.  This will be on our table come Christmas Day

I have put up the tree and decorated it, decorated the outside of the house, decorated the inside of the house, baked the holiday cookies, made the holiday candies, bought the presents, wrapped the presents, wrote the Christmas cards, and planned the holiday meal - Yet, I just can’t seem to find my Christmas spirit??!!  I don’t know where it has gone but it can’t seem to be found in doing all the usual things…

I know the real reason for the season and celebrate the birth of Jesus our Saviour.  However, for some reason I can not seem to find any joy this holiday season.  Maybe it is being away from my parents and the rest of my side of the family.  Maybe it is being out of work for the most part.  Maybe it is just holiday depression.  I really don’t know the answer to be honest.

I just wish that I could find my Christmas spirit so that I can stop faking it for everyone else…

Today the weather was weird.  The temperature kept fluctuating between about 0 up to about 10 then back down again over and over today.  We had a lot of wind which with our snow on the ground made for white out conditions.  I am happy that I didn’t have to go anywhere outside of town today!!

We bundled up to brave the cold to work out in the shop on some woodworking projects but the tool that DH bought to do the projects was a totally piece of junk.  If you do router work and are looking for a system to do letters and numbers do not buy the Craftsman system for it.  Even locked down tight it kept loosening and slipping.  You couldn’t even get through 1 letter without it starting to slip.  Needless to say the project that we started ended up ruined and none of the rest even attempted!!  It was really disappointing since these were Christmas Presents that we had designed and could not bring into creation. :( 

Our crazy huskies were loving today’s weather though!  It was hard to get them to stay inside and just relax.  They wanted to be out playing and frolicking in the snow and cold.

Tomorrow there is a pot luck at church so I need to get up early and get my stuff together for that event.  I plan on making Sweet Potato Fries in the oven and a New England Boil of sorts.  Hopefully they like what I make and what I bring isn’t the only thing that I can eat!!

We decorated a gingerbread house with our niece today and playing with that gingerbread made me hungry for some!  LOL  I found a recipe on-line and tweaked it a little to make it low fat in addition to dairy free.  It came out OK but with a weird texture :(  The spices need a little bit of tweaking too in order to be a little more to our tastes.  Not sure when I will play with the recipe though as DH informed me that he doesn’t even like gingerbread anyhow…

I had a lot of things that I wanted to get accomplished today but haven’t been too successful with them at all.  I guess that is just how it goes sometimes though!  I did make a corned beef and cabbage feast and take it over to the in-laws to share so that should count for something!

We got a pretty good amount of snow today.  Probably about 4 inches today alone!  I guess all that wishing for a White Christmas is going to pay off, as long as the wind doesn’t blow it all away

Not very much going on today.  Did some job hunting and applications on-line.  Praying that some of them pan out for me!  Most of the stuff that I applied for is considered freelance work, and I could do all of it no problem it is just a matter of getting someone to say YES! 

Rebel was sooo funny when he came in to eat dinner tonight… He was perfectly white and covered in snow.  He wouldn’t come in when I asked them too when it was snowing so out he stayed.  But, instead of going under the porch or into one of the other shelter areas that they have he must have just laid out in it.  Silly dog!