12 by 2012 Update

At the beginning of November I made a list of 12 things I wanted to accomplish by 2012. The result is that I accomplished about half. Some of them turned out not to be practical and a couple just didn't happen at all. But it was still nice to have some direction for the last two months of the year, when it can be so tempting to lay around and be completely unproductive.

Here's the rundown:

1. Get registered for school. Check! Only thing left to do before classes start on the 18th is pick up my books and get my student I.D.

2. Finish organizing and decorating the house, specifically the office and master bedroom. Sort of done. Some of the projects I have left require some things to be bought and I was unable to make them a priority in our budget. But I did get a good direction started.

3. Start learning Spanish. Not even started. I really want to learn Spanish while we're here but this is just not something I'm looking forward to at all. =\

4. Establish a training schedule for the El Paso ½ marathon in February. Not done either. I am still having issues with breathing and have made the decision to put serious running goals on the back burner for now. I might do a run/walk combo for the marathon but I haven't totally decided if there's even any point to doing that. 

5. Perfect the process of making lattes with my espresso machine, as well as my own flavoring syrups. I figured out that the problem I've been having with getting decent lattes in my machine is that my coffee grinder is crap. I have remedied this situation and things are a lot better. I also have made caramel and vanilla syrups and they are yummy!

6. Mercilessly pare down my book collection. Mostly done. I just haven't gotten around to actually getting them out of the house!

7. Read 25 new books. This wasn't quite a realistic goal, but that's okay. Total count ended up being 15, with 2 more started but not finished. You can go here to see what I've read in the past couple months.

8. Do more weeding of my closet and wardrobe, and also attempt to finally pinpoint what my style is so I am more purposeful when I shop. I think this is done, although I seem to be weeding things out regularly lately. I have finally come to terms with the fact that I am not a trendy dresser, a retro dresser, a punk rock dresser, a fashionista dresser, or any of the other styles I admire on other people but can't seem to pull off myself. I am a classic, jeans-and-cute-top dresser, with a few dresses and skirts and leggings thrown in. Will people see me in public and admire my unique style? Probably not, but I am okay with that. I am just going to be me. =)

9. Plan out a list of things I’d like to do for date nights. This ended up being a re-directed goal--instead of date nights (let's face it, for us date nights are always going to involve dinner out or a movie), we came up with a list of more weekend activities. We will try to pick only one a month to do, since most are day trips.

10. Get involved in our new church. Eh. This turned into "let's wait til after the holidays." And we also haven't decided if we're staying there. It's a good church but it doesn't feel like it is the best fit for us. We might visit another one I found, or we might try to get involved with the current one (such as joining a Sunday School class) and see if that helps. At any rate, this one got put off and requires more discussion.

11. Find more crockpot recipes I like in preparation for being busy again come January. Sort of done. I didn't actually try any but I do have some ideas to put on the menu. I kinda put off being serious about this one though once I realized I don't actually start classes til the 18th. 

12. Get organized for Christmas early. Done! I got all my presents and Christmas cards mailed out by the 17th. 

So, not too bad I guess!

Last year I made a goal to post in my blog at least once a week. That definitely didn't happen. But I'm back on track to try again this year. A few other goals for this year: 

* Develop better study habits. I did pretty well in school last year but I definitely could've done even better (especially considering what easy classes they were) if I'd been more disciplined and focused with studying. The harder my classes get the more I want to be sure I have good habits.

* Watch less TV during the week. I need to save the majority of my shows for the weekend, even if I have time to watch them during the week. I need to get better at being more productive in the evenings--reading, doing dinner or lunch prep for the next day, blogging, etc.--rather than vegging for hours with Facebook and the TV remote.

* Get back to daily Bible-reading. I was doing pretty well on this but slacked off over the holidays. And this year is going to be a new challenge because i was doing it in the morning but that's not going to work anymore once I start school. So I need to figure out a new time and plan.

* Do Project 365 this year. I took a break from it for a few years but I think I'm ready to start it up again!

I think that's enough to work on for now! The key to goal-setting is to start small and specific. =) What are some specific goals you have for the New Year?

It's 2012!

Happy New Year!!

I can't believe it's January 1st already! Stay tuned to hear how I did on my "12 by 2012" list of goals. =)

Social Networking: Is it really so bad?

You hear from them all the time: the Facebook haters. The people who lament that the internet destroys friendships and forces relationships to become shallow. "Nobody knows how to write a letter anymore!" "People only know how to communicate via Facebook and don't have a clue how to act face-to-face!" Etc., etc. There's some element of truth to this, of course, and if you're like me this element of truth will occasionally send you on a trip down Guilt Lane. But what most of us fail to realize is that THINGS don't make us who we are. Who we are is our own responsibility. If you are a crappy friend, it's not the internet's fault; it's yours. You'd be a crappy friend without the internet too. If someone is immature on Facebook, they're going to be immature in person too. Narcissistic people are going to be narcissists with or without the internet.

But there's still the question, "Is America's Facebook obsession a bad thing?" In some ways it is because it provides a convenient outlet for stupid people to have an audience they don't deserve. But there's a simple solution to that: don't be that person's audience. Blaming the internet that you have idiots on your friends list is like blaming your couch that you're overweight. =P But is Facebook bad for relationships? Most people think it is. I happen to disagree, but today I had a breakthrough as to why. 

As anyone who is on Facebook knows, the owners of Facebook like to change the layout a lot. And every time it makes a drastic change, you have a section of your friends list acting like it's the end of the world, and occasionally someone threatens to leave Facebook over it. One of my acquaintances threatened this today, using the usual self-absorbed excuse, "If people really want me, they know where to find me." Okay then. I hit the "unfriend" button. 

The incident caused me to think about why I'm on Facebook and why I love Facebook. I love Facebook because it's the easiest way to keep up with all my friends and family, many of which are long-distance now thanks to military life. I have a big family and a lot of friends. I don't have enough hours in my day to call, text, email, or hand-write letters to everyone I know, want to keep up with, or am trying to get to know (because I just moved to a new city and don't know a soul). It's wonderful to have Facebook as a place where I can see what everyone's doing on a daily basis and see pictures of their lives. When it comes to family and close friends, I still want to talk to them on the phone, video chat, or chat online privately when there are more personal things to discuss. So in that regard Facebook hasn't destroyed my relationships, and also, without it there are a lot of people who would've dropped out of my life completely because there is only so much time. This is why I am always going to have Facebook no matter what the layout looks like. None of their changes have made it impossible for me to talk to people, so no matter how annoying a new layout might be, it doesn't affect my big picture.

One thing people tend to forget when they dream about the days gone by when people wrote hand-written letters and spent so much quality time together is that people didn't move around so much back then. As it got easier and easier for the average person to travel and move their lives to different parts of the country, means of communication had to get easier and faster to keep up. In the "old days," most people grew up, got married, and settled down in the same town as their family and friends. Those who left either had to keep in touch through a slow postal system or drop off the planet. If I lived in the same town as all my family and friends, would I need Facebook? Probably not.

Growing up, I never had local friends. I did, however, have a lot of long-distance friends, aka pen pals. I loved to write letters. I could crank out a 10-pager with no trouble. It was fun. But let me tell you, it was no small feat keeping up with this much letter-writing. I would spend many hours a day trying to keep on top of my correspondence with my friends. This worked pretty well when I was between school and actually doing something with my life. Once I got a full-time job, letter-writing stopped. How was I to keep up with an 8-hour job, family, church, exercise, and personal time if having friends meant I had to write at least one letter a day? So that's when I started using the internet to keep up with people. And now, when we move every few years and get plopped down in a brand new state where I know nobody, Facebook has been a huge blessing. Many people who I now consider dear friends I never would have met if it wasn't for Facebook. As a result, it's very hard for me to understand the mindset that Facebook is just a website. To me, Facebook is people. Suddenly announcing you're deleting your Facebook (especially over such silly things as not liking its layout) is telling me, "You are not important and I can drop you out of my life with a click of my mouse." 

So, I think it's time people stopped lamenting society's changes and learned to make it work for them. The internet is nothing but a tool. It is your responsibility to use it wisely. 

Christmas Cruise!

Last week was our amazing cruise with Andrew's parents and sister. We had a fantastic time! This was the first cruise for both of us and we decided we'd definitely go on another one.

Highlights:

* The food. It was amazing! I am not a huge buffet person (mostly because I can't ever eat enough to do them justice, haha), so dinnertime was my favorite. Delicious and unusual appetizers, dinner entrees that made you feel like you were eating at a 5-star restaurant in New York, and awesome desserts. Now that I think about it, I'm mad at myself for not taking pictures of the dinners and making a blog post just about them; it was foodie heaven. But I did manage to get my hands on the recipe for the dinner I ordered the first night; as soon as I find the wine that the sauce calls for, I'm going to attempt to recreate it.
* The shows. Besides the ship's singers and dancers, they also had a comedian, a juggler, an impressionist, and a professional ballroom dance couple. They were all spectacular, and I think it's awesome you get to enjoy such first-class talent included in your ticket price.

* Haiti. My favorite port was Haiti (although the competition is kind of skewed since our Jamaica stop got canceled due to the stupid weather). It was beautiful and relaxing, and since it combined beach + mountains + sunshine, it's definitely a place both Andrew and I could agree on as perfection. ;-)

* The service. I'm pretty sure our dinner waiters and the bar waiters have ruined me for all other waiters! They were fun, interesting, perfectly attentive, and had a great sense of humor, even if they didn't always get our American jokes (I'm convinced they only understood a third of what my father-in-law said, haha).

Anyway, it was a great week. I have a nice tan (and some sunburn in some places of course) and some beautiful mementos (all from Haiti, which had the best local handmade items):

By the way, one weird/disturbing thing happened during dinner one night that I keep seeing in my head and I wish I could get it out. We were in the middle of dinner in the dining room when we heard a woman scream. It wasn't the "Eek I saw a mouse!" kind of scream; it had a horrid, scary tone in it that immediately brought the whole room quiet. Then I saw a couple half-dragging a young woman (obviously their daughter) away from their table, trying to get out of the room. Their head waiter was trying to help them and the woman started screaming to her, "Help me! She's a witch!" over and over and pointing at her mom. It was horrible to watch. They eventually got her out of the room. She was obviously mentally ill and I've never seen anything like that--it was like something you'd see in a movie. I felt so bad for her parents, although if I had a family member who was prone to psychotic breaks I doubt that a cruise would be the kind of vacation venue I would pick. =\

Merry Christmas!

 4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, 

5 in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child.

 6 While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. 

7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son ; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. 

8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. 

9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. 

10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid ; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people ; 

11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 

12 "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 

13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 

14 "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased." 

15 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us." 
16 So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. 
17 When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. 

18 And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. 

19 But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. 

20 The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

Missing People

I'm having a bit of a self-pity day. I miss my life in Washington. More specifically, I miss my friends. I miss having someone to do something with, no matter what it was. I miss my full calendar as well as the spontaneous get-togethers.

Sometimes friendship takes effort, such as when disagreements happen or they're just starting, but most of the time I feel true friendship doesn't require much effort after awhile. It's when there's no stress involved in spending time with each other. You just do it. "Everyone come over for coffee tomorrow morning! Just not before 9 or I'll be in my pajamas." Or "Hey, I'm going to the mall later; wanna join?" Or "I need coffee. Meet me at 2?"

Sigh.

I miss these girls.

 

"Without friends no one would choose to live." - Aristotle

Thanksgiving

The other day it dawned on me that Thanksgiving is the one holiday I can't bear to have messed with. Back during my cult-church days, Thanksgiving was one of the few holidays we were allowed to celebrate. Therefore, I have a lot of feelings of tradition for it that I don't have for other holidays. I love Christmas, but I could care less how we celebrate it. Easter is just any other Sunday; if someone wants to invite me to do something that's great, but if not, I'm just as happy to take a nap. But Thanksgiving? I've been celebrating it my whole life, so it has to be just so or I feel like something's missing. =)

This year I felt very blessed to have Andrew home again for the 2nd Thanksgiving in a row. In a life where holidays with your spouse feel more like a privilege than an expectation, I have definitely learned not to take that for granted! I was hoping to have some of his single buddies over because I love feeding people who don't get home-cooked meals very often, but that didn't work out. It was nice, though, just the two of us!

We certainly didn't lack for food:

That would be turkey, rolls, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potato souffle, green bean casserole, and homemade cranberry sauce. It was all delicious, if I do say so myself.

Dessert was pumpkin cake. It was delicious too--so moist. I may not like pumpkin pie, but I am sure down with some pumpkin cake!

The birds appeared to be celebrating Thanksgiving too:

We tried to give the cats some turkey, but cats just really aren't into celebrating holidays. They refused the turkey. Silly cats.

ABCs of Thankfulness

I used to enjoy doing this survey back when I used LiveJournal so I figure I'll continue the tradition. You will probably note that quite a few letters end up being a food or beverage. What can I say--I love food and beverages! ;-)

A - Army. It's not always an easy life, but I love the Army. It's awesome being part of something I believe in, it puts a roof over our heads, gives me adventures I'd never have otherwise, and allows me access to various benefits such as an amazing gym for free and a cheap place to get groceries. I also love the Army community (well, at least the cool percentage, haha). I'm also thankful that Andrew is enjoying his job, at least for now. =)

B - Butter. Butter makes the world a better place.

C - Cats. Without cats, my life would be lacking a good deal of laughs, affection, and companionship. Cats are such amazing creatures.

D - Dessert. I would be a miserable person without means of satisfying my sweet tooth.

E - Exercise. I'm glad I've grown to love it. I'm thankful for such an amazing gym to go to with such amazing trainers!

F - Friends. I have some of the best friends anyone could ask for. Considering I grew up close to friendless, this is something I'm grateful for every day. =)

G - Gas. Specifically, the fact that gas is now below three dollars here at Ft. Bliss.

H - Husband. I love my husband and I love being married. =)

I -In-laws. I'm pretty sure I have the best in-laws ever. Leaving out the fact that they spoil me way too much, they are wonderful people and so much fun to be around. I can totally be myself around them, and therefore I always look forward to visits to Michigan because I know they are going to be totally relaxing and devoid of any drama or the feeling of walking on eggshells.

J - Jesus. I'm thankful He died for me.

K - Kissing. It's fun, whether it's husbands or cats. ;-)

L - Literature. Books are awesome.

M - Mountains. They are so beautiful. I'm glad I'm getting to live near them once again. I'd rather have mountains than beach any day.

N -Nutrition. The study of nutrition is so fascinating to me and I become more and more obsessed with it all the time. I'm thankful that the truth is coming out about a lot of nutritional myths that have been popular for the last few decades and that people are starting to make healthier choices as a result.

O - Old Navy. It's one of my favorite places to shop.

P - Pizza. Yum.

Q - Quiet. Everyone needs some quiet in their lives, and as bored as I sometimes get these days, I am thankful for this period where I get to enjoy a quiet life. The busyness will start up again soon enough, so for now I'm making the most of it.

R - Root Beer. I don't let myself have soda too often, but when I do drink it, it has to be root beer.

S - School. I'm thankful I was finally able to make the jump this year and begin my college education. As stressful as school is sometimes, I thrive on it.

T - Texas. I may have pitched a fit about coming here at first, but it has grown on me. I don't want to live here forever but I am enjoying getting to experience a different culture. Texas definitely has a cult following, in a way! Haha

U - Unlimited. I pretty much love whenever anything is unlimited. ;-)

V - Vegetables. I'm glad I enjoy a good variety of vegetables. It makes being healthy a lot easier.

W - Wine. When you are sad, it makes you feel better. When you are happy, it makes you even happier. When you are stressed, it helps you relax. When you are with friends, it contributes to the laughter and the memories. Hooray for wine!

X - I think I'm going to skip X.

Y - Yoga. I'm glad I stopped being scared of it and jumped in. It's amazing and I know it's going to do a lot of positive things for my body.

Z - Zinc. It keeps you healthy and is found in such yummy foods as lobster, beef, and beans. ;-)

Oh cats...

We caught Foxy in a very relaxed sleeping position tonight. I couldn't not take pictures.

 

So dramatic.

(Note the awful state of our blinds. Always the evidence of pet owners. *sigh*)

Too cute.

I guess I should explain that Foxy is the newest member of the family. He showed up at the house a few months ago, all skin and bones and huge tail, and to nobody's real surprise, he's here to stay. He's still very timid around people, but otherwise seems to think he owns the place. =)

How many cups in a quart?

I have the worst memory for numbers. I don't know how many times I've been cooking/baking something in the kitchen and had to run over to my computer to figure out a kitchen conversion. No matter how many times I look them up, I never remember. I've seen a lot of ideas on Pinterest of storing things like grocery lists and recipes on the inside of cabinets, so suddenly it dawned on me today: make a conversion chart and put it on the inside of my baking cabinet!

I found this handy 2-page chart on the very first Google link that popped up. Not only does it have the basic conversions, it also has some other handy info like baking pan volume, how many marshmallows make 3 1/2 cups, and freezer life guidelines for various foods. Cool, huh?

I had to Scotch tape them up for now, but next time I'm at the store I'm going to get some laminating sheets and double-sided tape.

Just thought I'd pass this on for anyone who is as forgetful in the kitchen as I am! =)

Random Updatey Things

+ It's funny how it can only take a few months to not be accustomed to cool temperatures anymore! It is currently about 67 degrees right now in El Paso and extremely windy. There is so much dust blowing around that you can't see very far into the distance, and the mountains are hidden. Apparently this is what the weather is like here late fall through spring though so I'd better get used to it!

+ I had a very healthy breakfast (spinach/fruit/yogurt/flaxseed smoothie) and a very healthy lunch (quinoa veggie pilaf and a sweet potato), so now I'm making up for it with nutella chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven. One day I will have a completely healthy diet. But today is not that day. ;-)

+ Last night I'm pretty sure I had another mini-stroke, the first one in about 3 years. It still wasn't as bad as my first one, but there's nothing at all fun about seeing black spots, then feeling your brain go into a deep fog, your hand go numb, and a dull headache to finish it all off. Ugh.

+ Our passports came in the mail today. It's always stressful waiting for them, especially the closer you get to your trip, so I'm thankful they came in after only 2 weeks. Now, I just have to worry that Andrew's leave won't be approved for some reason or my in-laws will get snowed in and not be able to make their flight! Ha. I've mentioned it on Facebook but not here, but in case anyone missed it: my amazing in-laws are taking us on a cruise for Christmas! I've never been on a cruise so I am super excited. They even booked us an outside room with a balcony. Watching Caribbean sunsets every night for a week? I'll take it. =)

+ I've decided to get a Kindle. I've been extremely resistant to the idea of an e-reader for some time now, and honestly I think I will always prefer real books, but I realized this last move that my book situation is really out of control for this point in my life. Maybe one day, when I have a permanent house and still no kids so I can devote a whole room to being an old-fashioned library, I can buy zillions of books and never get rid of any of them. But until then, I need to stop buying books. I have no room for them. =( I've decided on the Kindle Touch without 3G, I think:

+ Speaking of books, I've finished two since I made my goal of reading 25 by the end of the year. (Yes, I read fast.)

+ I've been accepted to El Paso Community College and also had my major approved by MyCAA for funding. Next step is registering once my transcripts get sent over! I'm so excited to start school again. As much as I enjoy being only a housewife every once in awhile, I can't do it for too long.

+ That's all for now. Happy November!

I may not want kids, but....

I kinda want to offer to babysit someone's kid soon so I have an excuse to watch the new Winnie the Pooh movie when it comes out on DVD this week.

Or maybe not. I can't imagine I would be a very good babysitter with this kind of ulterior motive. And kids are not always reliable in their movie interests.

"You want to play outside? No-no, we are going to stay in here on the couch and watch Pooh."

"You don't like Pooh? Well, I don't like Yo-Gabba-Gabba. And guess who has the remote?"

Etc.

Soooo, instead of losing friends I should probably just be a weirdo and Netflix it for myself. ;-)

Disclaimer: I am not actually mean to kids when I babysit. Just in case anyone was concerned.

12 by 2012

How is it almost November already?? I saw an idea on a blog I started following called "12 by 2012." Basically it's a list of 12 things you want to accomplish by the new year. I've planned to do these things anyway, but putting them down and posting them for everyone to see will hopefully give me some accountability! So, here's my list!

1. Get registered for school.This is a given, but registering for school is always a huge pain in the butt, so I've been procrastinating. And what happens when you procrastinate about registering? The good classes fill up!
2. Finish organizing and decorating the house, specifically the office and master bedroom.
3. Start learning Spanish.
4. Establish a training schedule for the El Paso ½ marathon in February. My goal is to finish around 2 hours this time!
5. Perfect the process of making lattes with my espresso machine, as well as my own flavoring syrups.
6. Mercilessly pare down my book collection. If I didn’t love it and am not likely to reread it or insist someone else borrow it, out it goes.
7. Read 25 new books (via the library or finally biting the bullet and buying a Kindle). The one I’m in the middle of now, The Whistling Season by Evan Doig, can count as #1.
8. Do more weeding of my closet and wardrobe, and also attempt to finally pinpoint what my style is so I am more purposeful when I shop.
9. Plan out a list of things I’d like to do for date nights. There always seem to be a lot of things we want to do that we never get around to doing, and then we regret it once we’ve moved again.
10. Get involved in our new church. Right now we are just kinda “lost in the crowd.”
11. Find more crockpot recipes I like in preparation for being busy again come January.
12. Get organized for Christmas early, since we are going to be gone for part of the month. 

There you go! I'll keep you updated on my progress. =)

My first successful attempt at making a Mexican meal

A couple years ago I tried making enchiladas. I hated them. Not long after I attempted quesadillas. Whatever recipe I used must've been a crappy one, because the tortillas burned and the filling didn't cook. My conclusion: Mexican food is hard and trying it only results in wasting money thanks to ruined ingredients. Haha I still don't think I'll ever try enchiladas again; I've realized recently that I probably failed at them because I don't really care for enchiladas. I never order them when I go out for Mexican, so why bother making them at home? But ever since I ordered a carnitas platter at the first Mexican restaurant we tried after arriving in El Paso, I have been burning to recreate that meal. It was SO GOOD!

Here is how my attempt turned out: 

It was delicious! I will change a few things next time I try the meal, though. The pork and the beans needed the seasonings upped quite a bit. I was cautious with them because I don't like things too spicy or salty, but after tasting them in the context of the meal, I would probably double the seasonings on the pork and the beans just needed a lot more salt (I did add more when I reheated them and they were much better).

The pork was super easy. I basically combined a few different recipes from Allrecipes.com and this is what I ended up with:

• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon crumbled dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 (4 pound) boneless pork shoulder roast
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 small can chopped chilies    

Mix together spices in a bowl. Cut pork roast into 2-inch chunks. Coat pork with the spice mixture. Place pieces in the bottom of a slow cooker. Pour the chicken broth around the sides of the pork, being careful not to rinse off the spice mixture. Add chilies. Cover and cook on High until the pork shreds easily with a fork, about 4-5 hours (or 10 hours on Low). Turn the meat halfway through cooking time. When the pork is tender, remove from slow cooker, and shred with two forks. Spread the pork in a thin layer on a baking sheet and add a few generous spoonfuls of the cooking liquid. Put in the oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, until it is browned and the liquid has evaporated.

It may not look appetizing right now, but the smell sure is!

A peek during the browning process. Is it time for dinner yet?!

The recipes for the refried beans and rice I don't want to share here. They are from a friend's parents' restaurant so I'm sure they'd rather not have them published all over the web for anyone to find. =) But she did say I could share them, so if anyone would like them, just shoot me an email. But I did find similar recipes for the beans here and for the rice here that I'm sure would be just as delicious. After all, seasoning is always up to the individual person and that's really the key. Another key to the beans is not to rush them. They need to be cooked until they are VERY tender, or they won't mash well.

For my tortillas, I used the Pioneer Woman's recipe. I was pretty intimated upon reading how hard it is to get them just right, and pretty prepared for half of them to go straight to the trash. But I followed her recipe exactly, and to my surprise I didn't have a single bad one out of the whole batch. I didn't bother with trying to get them perfectly round though since I'm sure that just takes a lot of practice and it doesn't effect the taste so who cares? =)

One taste of these beauties and you'll never buy a tortilla from a store again! =)