Whatever Weekend: The Totally Awesome Blog Hop REDUX

Hello, everyone! I hope the weekend is treating you well so far. I'm making a Special Saturday Post to tel you that I'm participating in the current round of the Totally Awesome Blog Hop, hosted by ChantillySongs, Acute Designs, Modern Buttercup, and House of Tong. If you like reading my stuff, you should definitely check out some of the others on the list. To check them out, just click the button on my right sidebar, scroll down, and click away!

Everyone featured on the Hop has worked really hard, but I'm going to highlight some of my favorites:

Inside My Hideaway

Mary writes about crafts, art, photography, and her life.

Adventures of an Anglophile

I'm already in love with Andini Ria's ensembles.

Chocolate Covered Love

I cannot WAIT to try her recipe for Butter Mints!

Chamomile Dealer

First of all, I love her title; secondly, I love her style.

I haven't looked at all the sites on the list, but I'm sure there are a lot of other great ones. Check them out! 

...and if you feel like looking at mine again, I'm #74.

Make-it-Monday: Blue Skies, Blue Heart

I'm a little down, everyone. Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson closed yesterday, and I've got the post-show blues. Six weeks is a long time to run a musical, and it's wormed its way into my life in a significant manner. I'm going to miss the cast, the crew, the set, our themed mic checks, the goodies always waiting in the kitchen, and smearing blood all over a friend's arm every night. Rachel Jackson is quite a lady to inhabit - I'm gonna miss her most of all.

Rehearsal moment.

The Jacksons, incognito.

Merry Effing Christmas from the Jacksons
(Photo credit: BreeAnne Clowdus)

Hashtag, TheAmericanDream.
(Photo credit: BreeAnne Clowdus)

Final preview, a chemical explosion forced us out of the building.
The show still started on time.

Final notes session.

Sexy tour guide.

Sexy Andrew Jackson.

If illness is not metaphor, then why do I feel sick when I look at you?
(Photo credit: BreeAnne Clowdus)

"I choose you." / "Thank you."
(Photo credit: BreeAnne Clowdus)

Don't fret - I'll be back to normal in a few days. I'm running a children's show, after all. Being Anne Frank will lift my spirits.

Courtesy of Caleigh. 

I promised I'd show you all the Valentine's Day present I made for Dan - but I forgot to take pictures before I left the house. Oops. Instead, I'll show you the infographic that inspired the project:

Click pic to see the full post on P.S. - I made this...

I was smitten with this idea from the moment I saw it - such a simple, personal gift to give my Very Excellent Boyfriend! I bought a lovely frame from TJ Maxx, kissed away, and now it sits on his bedside table. I'll share a picture of the finished product when I get home.

It was a frugal Valentine's for Very Excellent and I. I'm very low on discretionary income, and he's too polite to shame me with expensive gifts when I can't respond in kind (how sweet). But I can't say I minded. There's something special about a low-key V-Day. I don't need him to spend money on me - I just want to spend some time together. He made that happen with a surprise oyster dinner at home, and a few episodes of Friday Night Lights.

Favorite!

No V-Day is complete without candy.

Gracie Bell!

The baby's eyes in that screencap are making me feel a lot better. Maybe I need to spend some time watching baby videos on YouTube - that'll chase the last of my melancholy away.

Tasty Tuesday: Red Sauce with Butter and Onion

No one knows why we do the things we do. Human nature is a mystery, at best. So often, we'll know what needs to be done, but for whatever reason we don't take action. I can't explain why I make these decisions - I just know that I am imperfect.

I will never know why I avoided making this pasta sauce for so long. There was no good reason for the delay, no purpose for it. It's the easiest recipe there is, but still, I put it off. On Saturday, I finally gathered the meager 3 ingredients and stewed them up. And I'm furious with myself for waiting. I first read about this sauce two years ago, and that's two years of my life I can never get back.

Don't ever buy premade red sauce again. Just don't. Make this instead.

Recipe from the greatest cooking blog of them all, smitten kitchen.

Ingredients:

• Can of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes
• 5 tbs butter
• 1 yellow onion

Directions:

• Peel the onion and slice it in half.
• Put the tomatoes, onion, and butter in a 3 qt. saucepan.
• Heat on medium until it simmers.
• Lower heat and let simmer for about an hour.
• Crush the tomatoes against the side of the pot. If some of the onion gets pulverized, that's okay.
• Remove the rest of the onion and set aside. It tastes great on sandwiches, so don't just chuck it.
• Try not to eat the whole batch directly out of the pan. It tastes even better on pasta - trust me.

When I first tasted the sauce, it didn't seem quite right - definitely not the red sauce I'm accustomed to. But I licked the spoon clean. And then I took another spoonful. And another. Pretty soon I wanted to puree the whole thing into soup and just forget that it's supposed to be sauce - but that'll have to wait til next time.

To quote, I dunno, somebody, this stuff will make you want to slap your grandma. Instead, give her the recipe. Once she tastes it, she'll slap herself for not thinking of it first. 

After you've licked your bowl clean, put the remainder in a mason jar and store it in the fridge. In a couple days, boil some adorable music note pasta and enjoy it all over again.

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In other news, no one has tried the Sprout Challenge yet, and I'm a little heartbroken. Guys, what gives? Remember how I said I would wait patiently? That was a lie - I'm never patient.  Get to it!

Tasty Tuesday: EMERGENCY ALERT!

Y'all, I just read the BEST NEWS!

Deb, from Smitten Kitchen, will be in Atlanta on THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28th! She's doing a second book tour, and this time she is coming to my city! 

If you are not yet a devout Smitten Kitchen reader, then you need to get the hell off this website and go to hers. She is a veritable home-cooking genius, and she will change your life.

The details: Thursday, February 28th, 7:00 p.m. at Manuel’s Tavern. 

It has been programmed into my phone, and I will be there with bells on. Do not try to hang out with me on February 28th - I am booked. Unless, of course, you want to hang out at Manuel's Tavern - that's totally doable. 

Guys, I'm gonna get my copy signed!

Tasty Tuesday FTW!

Tasty Tuesday: Stone Soup, a la Michelle's Tiny Kitchen

My favorite easy recipe is adapted from one I found on Michelle's Tiny Kitchen. She calls it "Stone Soup," and I think that's the perfect name.

Did you ever read Stone Soup when you were a kid? Or when you were old? It's a great story about how stingy people can be tricked into sharing. When I was little, I would get SO HUNGRY reading about the special soup. Sometimes, I'd sip water from a bowl and imagine it was the strong, wonderful elixir from the story.

Now, when I want something hot and flavorful, I look at my boyfriend I just make it! Being an adult has its perks.

How about our liquor/olive oil collection?

I'm a kale fanatic, so I put two to three large handfuls of the stuff in every batch. I have tiny hands, but that's still a lot of kale. Basically, whatever greens you have on hand will do - this time, I used celery because why not? And I love lentils, so I like to throw in a cup or so. 

Also, instead of seasoning with salt and pepper, I tried a half teaspoon of miso paste instead. I was pleased with the results - it jives quite well with the greens. Just remember, if you want to add some miso to your life, you shouldn't boil it. That kills all it's wonderful digestive properties.

The best thing about this soup is that the house smells amazing for three days after it's made. Mmm...

Make-it-Monday: Tie Bows, a la Thrifted Things

Hello. I suppose you're all wondering why I called you to this meeting. Well, there's no easy way to say this, but...I've started a blog. Yes, yes, I know - you weren't expecting this. I'm sorry to have surprised you. As someone who doesn't like surprises, I can understand how unpleasant this is. But I hope you'll forgive me, and that you'll stick around for a while. Or, maybe just come back this time next week. But just so you know, you'll miss a lot if you do. 

Why's that, you ask? Well, it's simple - this is a Days of the Week place. Each day has a theme, and I'll be posting something new for all of you, my loyal readers. Whom I told to come here via Facebook. 

You all know me, so I'll be candid: I act, and I sing, and I teach around town, and I love my life (a lot). But the Business of Shows can be, well, frustrating, and sometimes I need to blow-off some steam. Usually, I do this by playing dress-up in my closet, shopping at thrift stores, eating, writing, or crafting. I'm still going to do those things, but now I'm going to share them with you.

People always say to me, "Explore your interests!" And for the longest time, I was afraid that theatre was my only real interest. But recently, it occurred to me that all the aforementioned things are interests, too! Whatdya know! 

So this is how I will chronicle all the little things that make me smile. 

Also, you're right - I intentionally debuted my new project on New Year's Eve. I do so love symbolism (just not color symbolism). 

So with the intro out of the way, let's move on to our first post, shall we? 

Today, is Monday, and that means I'm Making something!

I have long-admired miss Katherine of Thrifted Things, and this Christmas I decided to borrow one of her ideas and make hair bows for my girlfriends. I picked-up a few neckties from Goodwill and, voila! Absolutely adorable bows!

Victory!!

Instead of mounting them on headbands, I attached them to barrettes. Headband size is so variable - I didn't want to misjudge anyone's cranium. "You thought my head was THIS BIG???" So I played it safe.

They turned out so well that I made a couple for myself, too. They're darling, and go with everything. I've already worn mine to the point of obsolescence. 

Check out Katherine's tutorial - it's great!