25 years

I have now been on this planet for 25 years... ick.... lol... When I turned 20 it was bad enough but turning 25 is mid life crisis territory...lol.... John had to pipe in with the now you are a quarter of a century old... So I told him to shut up that he was close to one third of a century old! so .. blah.. lol... He has now left me at the age of 23... which I think he should count back till I am 21 again.   :) that would be good. Just leave me there for a while. lol.

On my birthday John woke me up and gave me a B-Day card and some Roses. He hasn't given me roses in forever because I think it is wasteful to cut flowers that are grown just for that purpose. But it was nice to get flowers after so many years. When we first started dating he used to bring me a single rose ever so often. It was really sweet. He also sent me flowers for my B-day when he was deployed in Iraq. There has only been a couple times since then. So its not an every year thing.  But it was nice to wake up to flowers from my Husband. :)

Very pretty. But I wish I could enjoy them more. They have to sit in the pantry and hide from the cats so they don't eat them.

John worked for most of the day. When he got home we went to my parents house for cake. Mom made me a Vegan Chocolate Chai cake from The 100 Best vegan Baking Recipes book. It turned out really yummy and moist.

Is that 25 candles?? way to many

Look how yummy

Even the coloring inside this cake is pretty

Then John and I went to Mi Pueblos for dinner. We haven't been there in forever. It was a nice evening. Just to sit and relax for an hour or so and chat while we ate some yummy Mexican food. That was the first time we have been out to dinner since Roxie started her HW treatment. We are starting to work up the time she is home alone again. We went to subway a couple weeks ago and left her for an hour and a half and that night it was around four hours but she did really good. But back to Mi Pueblos.  They have really good food and they serve a huge amount for not much money at all. The whole dinner was $25 bucks and that includes the $5 tip.

John watching women's fighting ...lol

They have all kinds of very pretty hand painted art 

This is Johns picture of me.. Thanks Hun....

The Decorative chairs

More of Johns Camera work

Making me look like an idiot while I am trying to eat...lol

First look at the Vegetarian Fajitas, No guacamole, sour cream, or cheese

They have huge portions

All the chips and salsa you can eat. Their salsa is really good and super tangy.

The main dish comes with rice, re fried beans, pica de galla, and lettuce

Really bad cellphone pics but thats better than nothing

Me eating my last shell. This is how much came home with me. It made a midnight snack and breakfast the next day!

This is what was left of my side

Another picture of the enameled chairs. The table tops all have painted enameled pictures too. 

After we ate we stopped by walmart. john wanted me to pick up something for myself but instead I got the kitties this scratcher :) they really like it and that makes me happy.

No Bake Peanut butter Cornflake Pecan Cookies

These cookies are yummy and fast and you can really mix anything you want into them.

Also pic of 2nd version

1Cup Sugar
1Cup Corn syrup
1Cup Peanut Butter
5 Cups Corn Flakes
3/4 Cup Pecans

Put the Sugar and Corn syrup into a pot and heat till it boils. Stir so it does not scorch. Take off heat add the peanut butter. Mix well to combine. The add the corn flakes & pecans, mix well. Put spoon fulls onto wax paper covered cookie sheets let cool. Store in air tight container.

These would work well with pretzels, as rice crispy treats, dried fruits, and other kinds of nuts, flax seed, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds. You could pretty much add anything you want to them.

The 2nd version I used.

Same sugar, corn syrup, & peanut butter. Then I used 4 cups corn flakes, I cup old fashion oatmeal, 1 cup pecans & almond, &  a few raisins. Wish I would have had some sunflower seeds.

2nd Version

Letting go...

Today has started off with letting go....

In March 2009 my Grandfather past away. I bought and brought home his old Chevy Cheyenne Truck in hopes that we could fix it or have it fixed. But the damaged turned out to be to much for us to handle and we couldn't find anyone who would fix it.

I have an issue with sentimentality. I do get attached to objects knowing where they come from and just wanting to have those memory's triggers to be right there even though I know I will have the memory rather I have the object or not.It is especially hard when I have lost someone close to me. I am dealing with these feeling although at times I put it off for a while.... procrastinating what obviously has to happen. This is one of those things I have been putting off for sometime.

I have been talking about saleing it for a while now. All it is doing is sitting outside in our driveway rusting away. I decided I would rather it be used than just crusted dumped and was talking to my Mom about wishing I could find the guys number that wanted to buy it to us for parts. When I came home yesterday I was greeted with my husband saying a guy stopped asking to purchase the truck for parts. He came back right as I was leaving again and said he was the guy I had talked with a while ago about buying the truck. So I didn't hesitate. I sold him the truck.  I decided I must be ready to let go. The guy I had been talking about earlier in the day showed up on my door step so I better take the chance that life was giving me to know that the truck would still be around. Even if it was just in smaller parts on this guys truck.

So this morning I am sitting here waiting for this guy to bring back his flat bed and pick up the truck and though I really don't want to see it go I know that it is time for me to let go.

Lil Banti has a newly hatched Baby

Tonight around 7:30pm I went to clean out the chicken coop and instead of cleaning I heard a chick! I have been listening for a couple days now trying to hear if any the eggs were hatching so I was very surprised. I really thought the chickens had ate all the eggs and didn't think any of them would hatch. 

He was making the line around the egg and had not fully hatched when we looked under Ivy. Ivy had stolen Lil Banti's nest earlier this week and so Lil Banti was laying on Ivy's eggs soothingly clucking to her baby from afar. I felt awful but was going to let Ivy raise the baby since she was laying on it. 

We had been checking on the hatching egg for about an hour when Ivy got up and stepped right on the egg and busted the rest of the shell open. Then she pecked the baby very hard 3 or 4 times. John snatched her out of the coop and gave the baby time to move a little and then put Ivy back to give her another try at mothering and again she attacked him. So John snatched her up again and I held him/her while John Made a new nest for Lil Banti in the small brooder enclosure. Then he placed her in there with two eggs and then I gave her the baby. I laid the baby beside her and he pulled himself under her like it was nothing. It was nice to see s/he is strong and his/her voice is strong so hopefully the baby makes it.

Check in on him in the morning when s/he should be all dry and fluffy.

Freshly hatched

This is his/her egg. See the veins on the inside of the egg. That is were he grew and flourished before hatching.

1st Heartworm treatment Tab for our HW Positive Roxie

On our way to the Vet...again Monday Aug 23, 2010

 Yesterday I took Rox back to the vet and dropped her off for the day for her first HW Treatment Tab (intercepter). She had to stay for the day because the most reactive time is the first 3 to 8 hours after her tablet was given. In that time, as well as the next couple days there is a chancer just like after the Ivermectin shots that she can have an inflammatory reaction in her lungs to all the microfilaria (baby heartworms) dieing.  Since she has an inflammatory reaction to the adult HW's dieing she had a Deximethosone (Prednisone) shot and a Benedryle shot. Then she had for first HW tab. I called through put the day to check on her and she really did well all day. No coughing, no depression, no anythings. So we got to bring her home. The vet said it kills all the Microfaliaria (baby HWs) with in the first few hours and with in 48 hours all of the Mirofaliara break down and reabsorb into the system so the threat for a reaction should be over. But just to make sure there is no reaction in that time or past the first 48 hours... She is on Prednison pills for 7 days I think. But today she is doing really well and has not coughed or show any signs but a little bit of sleepiness and she hasn't ate very well. But I think if I give her a dose of Pepcid AC that her belly will feel better. But I have to wait for the Pred to get into her system before I give her her Pepcid.

Rox and Me getting some cuddle time on the way to the vet.

After this tablet I have to wait for 5 months and then have her retested for HWs. Hopefully they will be gone. But there is a small window in the reproduction of the HWs that can not be killed by the shots or the pills. This is the reason she could still be HW postive even after this. Hopefully all the worms were mature at the time she got her shots. Fingers crossed. Will Update later.... 

Simplicity in a Pizza Crust- Taco Pizza, Spinach Stromboli & Riblet Stromboli

Lately I have been trying alot of simple variations with pizza dough just looking for something new and simple to make when I am in a hurry. And when I say simple I really mean beyond simple with these Ideas....

Taco Pizza
Couldn't decide on Tacos or Pizza the other night so we went Taco Pizza...  I have been craving some pizza and no one around us sales any sort of vegan cheese for pizzas. And I have made some pizza without cheese before and some have been great but some have been total fails. So I played it safe and took an Idea that we had seen along time ago at Cicis Pizza and made it. The taco pizza turned out really good and it was a nice off set from our normal meals. It was also super easy to make.

1 Pizza dough
Yves Ground Burger
Taco sauce & salsa
1 pack Simply Organic Taco seasoning
water
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Vegan cheese( if you have it)
Toffuti Sour Cream

This really came together fast. Preheat your oven to Pizza crust instructions. Brown up your burger a little. Prepare taco seasoning to package instructions. Add the sauce to burger and heat till done. Prepare the pizza crust on an oiled sheet add some taco sauce and salsa if you would like. You can also use stewed tomatoes. Then add burger to the top and put in oven per dough instructions.Or you can keep the burger off till you get the dough out of the even. This will allow the burger to be more moist. Then add all your toppings.

Wheat Crust

Add Taco sauce, salsa, and/or stewed tomatoes

Add Burger

See the cooking dries out the burger some. It was still good think I will try not putting the burger in the oven next time.

Fresh Lettuce from our garden

Fresh Cherokee Purple Tomato from our garden

Almost ready to eat 

Just add a little more taco sauce and some toffuti sour cream and its ready to eat. Yum yum!

Spinach Stromboli

I really like this eatery in our Mall called Sbarro. The guys who work there are extremely nice and will make my food special any time I ask. Before we went vegan we ate Sbarro's Spinach & Cheese Stromboli's pretty often. After we went vegan a couple years ago one day I stopped and asked them if I could order one special w/o cheese and w/o egg wash and they are really great and make it for me everytime. The one manager that always seems to be there when we are around even knows me when he sees me and tells his guys before I even ask what I need. 15 to 20 minutes later I have a yummy Vegan spinach Stromboli.

I have been thinking about trying to make them at home for a long time and have given it one try with frozen spinach a ling time ago and didn't like it. So this time I used canned drained can spinach and a store bought white pizza dough ball. They turned out pretty good but didn't even compare to Sbarro's version. I also blended up half a can of stewed tomatoes and added some spices as a dipping sauce.  It was ok. I didn't strain the spinach good enough and I think I over stuffed them. They were better once I pulled out some of the spinach.

But if you ever have a chance to go to Sbarro's ask them if they will make you one w/o cheese and egg wash. They have always been great. Even the owner talked to me one day. He is an older man and came up and asked if I was a vegan. I said yes and he is the one who told me they had egg wash on them to make sure I told them I didn't want it. So They are all great.

Riblets Stromboli

Super simple and really tasy. Nice new spin on the morningstar riblet. The pizza dough makes it a nice portable snack. Just what I wanted. and very easy. Pizza dough wrapped around a frozen riblet stuck in the oven per dough instructions a little longer to get the inside done. Then you can take it with you. Just make sure you watch out for the riblet BBQ sauce drips. Next time I think I will add some corn and maybe some other veggies. I know it didn't brown but it was really good.

"Pilling" A Chicken ( Giving oral medication in pill form)

It is pretty easy to give a chicken a pill. Thought I would tell every one how it can be done easily. The first method is easiest with two people but can be carefully done with one. Wrap the chicken loosely in a towel still sitting upright. First off of course you can loosely hold the chickens head. Carefully slightly open the beak and put the pill in the back of her mouth. Do not throw it down her throat. She will swallow it just from it being in the back of her mouth. Once your chicken is feeling better it isn't always easy to do this. I have to do this on my own normally so I have started doing it a very very easy way.

This Berry Method does not stress them out from being handled and forcefully given pills. But sometimes when they are very sick you will have to use the first method till they are feeling good enough to take their favorite treats.

Our chickens love berries. Strawberries, Blueberries, etc. But blueberries are some of their favorites. They swallow them whole so it is the perfect treat to stick their medication in.

This is the Baytril (antibiotics). I break it into fourths. This is the 22mg pill so she takes 11mg morning and evening.

Here is the blueberry with the fourth of pill stuck inside it. Fits really nice and won't fall out. I have to give her two stuffed berries everytime she gets her antibiotics.

Make sure the right chicken gets the meds. This is Big Red and she is in isolation since she was attacked by a raccoon. So its easy for her to get her pill without the other chickens interfering. But make sure you chicken swallows the whole berry or the pill might fall out and not get taken. So watch her till she is finished. 

Don't know if you can tell by the picture but she has it in the back of her mouth whole swallowing it. These pills go straight down this way and I can't think of an easier way to get them to take their meds.