queen to 1: April 2008

they call me Martha

Rambled by Kelli on Wednesday, April 23, 2008

I was going through some pictures tonight and came across a few snapshots from Christamas 2006. Ah, how could I have forgotten. That was the year I had my family over to our new house for the big holiday and I became Martha in a whole new way.

Flash back to several years before this....

I have always, always loved Martha Stewart Living Magazine. Not necessarily loved Martha, because lets face it, those aren't all her ideas. I would get so excited to get my new copy every month. I would sit down and eagerly turn each page to see what Martha had in store for me. One particular issue showcased these awesome party cakes, however, they weren't your typical chocolate, marble, etc..... They were savory cakes. The pictures made your mouth water. They looked so pretty. I kept the issue (as I did with all my others) for that "maybe someday" dream.

I bet you're wondering what kind of cakes these were exactly....

Smoked Salmon Cake

Brie and Walnut Cake

Focaccia Cake

Sushi Cake

Well...back to Christmas 2006.

By this time, I had a lot more experience in the kitchen, and I thought...why not.

So out comes the old issue. Oh boy...new ingredients!

I found myself writing out a grocery list like no other I had before:

capers

creme fraiche

roasted red peppers

black olive tapenade

mascarpone cheese...

and on and on and on......

Then came the fun new item in my kitchen.

My FOOD PROCESSOR! I love this machine so very much!

Ok, time to get to work.

First, the Smoked Salmon Cake. I remember cutting that danged pumpernickle bread and cursing my Martha tendencies. My reward...firing up my food processor. It made easy work of creating the "frosting" for the cake. I was having so much fun!

Then, it was on to my second cake (I only made the two...I mean come on...I'm not really Martha...I don't have an entire staff standing by to aid my madness) So, I also made the Focaccia Cake. This was a lot easier. Mostly layering with very little bread mangling...I mean cutting.

Then, as if by some sort of Martha magic...Viola....party cakes that looked just like the pictures in my magazine, if not better. (yes, my arm is sore from reaching that far over my shoulder to pat myself on the back.) I must say...I even impressed myself. I had fun putting everything together and my family was very impressed, bu I'm sure the kick ass bloody mary bar might have had something to do with it too!

Here are a few pics of my "day in the life of Martha".

Digital Scrapbooking

Rambled by Kelli on Monday, April 21, 2008

Uh oh...I've discovered yet another fun creative outlet....

this is my first attempt. I'm still in the learning process, which is so much fun!

off to a good start

Rambled by Kelli on Thursday, April 17, 2008

I weighed in today.....155.6

I haven't been able to get to the gym yet this week....I've rushed home everyday to play with Frankie (see queensfrankie.blogspot.com).

I think the loss will really take off once I start working out again! Yeah!

It should be a naughty word.

Rambled by Kelli on Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Diet- a) food or drink regularly provided or consumed b) habitual nourishment c) the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason d) a regimen of eating and drinking sparingly so as to reduce one's weight

I absolutely hate this word! It carries such negativity in my mind. I always associate fad diets when I hear the word. Ya know...only drink cabbage water for a week. You can only eat peanut butter for two days and quince's for three days. Or the crazy one my sister in law did where she could only eat banana's one day. BARF! Or any "diet" that says you can't eat veggies - aka Atkins. I absolutely despise fad diets.

I also despise weight loss pills. Hydroxy whatsit or Metabowhatever....fooey.

However, with all that said....I have started doing both. All though I don't consider this a fad diet. It's about common sense, which unfortunately, I've lacked lately when it comes to my eating habits.

I started the Alli program. Here's why I've decided to give it a try:

1) It's FDA approved
2) It's built upon the principal of promoting a healthy lifestyle. This includes well rounded, reasonable, and healthy eating along with exercise...which is what we should all be doing.
3) It's built as a system with parameters and steps to offer structure and a sense of control.

I have the hardest time getting myself to eat right and stick to it. But I respond very well to structure and systems. I could care less about the pills (which block 50% of your fat intake from being absorbed by your body) but I love having a system in place again.

I've started my weight loss with a current weight (and I can't believe I'm about to post this...) of 158.4 lbs. My goal weight is 140. I don't have a goal date because I want to do this safely and responsibly.

So..wish me luck!

Dinner with the Headley's

Rambled by Kelli on Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Talk about pulling out all the stops!

Erika and Travis had us over for dinner last Friday and it was FANTATIC!! Great Food, Good Wine, and Wonderful Friends. What could be better...oh wait...the dessert!

The Menu:

Bacon Wrapped Filets

Grilled Asparagus

Garlic Fingerling Potatoes

Baby Field Greens Salad

and...Lemon Cake served with a lemon wage!

After dinner, we sat enjoying our wine (or Peligrino for the expecting Erika) and laughed and laughed and laughed. It was fun catching up and listening to Jeff and Travis regail us with thier college day stories. It was also fun seeing Jeff react to all the pregnant stories Erika had for us. I even caught a snapshot of Jeff checking to see if he could "hear" baby Headley.

Meet the Dooleys

Rambled by Kelli on Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Once upon a time.....

There lived a young newly wed couple.

Meet Mack and Ariana Dooley.

They have a beautiful home in Riverbloom Hills

Mack and Ariana have been "happily married" for the past 6 months...however, that has recently changed. One day, Mack brought home a friend from work. Her name was Marietta. Ariana was happy to entertain Mack's friend and even made dinner for the three of them. After dinner, Ariana excused herself to the bathroom for a few moments. When she came back, she caught Mack flirting with Marietta. Mack saw the look on Ariana's face and shortly after her return to the living room, he politley said goodnight to Marietta. Soon after...it was ROYAL RUMBLE time! Ariana promptly kicked Mack's arse. (we have photographs folks!)

Needless to say...Mack might be sleeping on the couch for a while.

Tune is soon for the continuing story of the Dooleys!

divorce vs murder....

Rambled by Kelli on Tuesday, April 01, 2008

A nice, calm and respectable lady went into
the pharmacy, walked up to the pharmacist,
looked straight into his eyes, and said,
"I would like to buy some cyanide."

The pharmacist asked, "Why in the world do you need cyanide?"
The lady replied, "I need it to poison my husband."
The pharmacist's eyes got big and he exclaimed,
"Lord have mercy! I can't give you cyanide
to kill your husband. That's against the law!
I'll lose my license! They'll throw both of us in jail!
All kinds of bad things will happen. Absolutely not!
You CANNOT have any cyanide!"

The lady reached into her purse and
pulled out a picture of her husband
in bed with the pharmacist's wife.
The pharmacist looked at the picture and
replied, "Well now, that's different. You
didn't tell me you had a prescription."