Sunrise Blueberry Muffins

Ever since I saw a commercial on television for Denny's all-you-can-eat pancakes for $4.00 per person, I have been craving breakfast foods. Since I started working I don't really get up early on my off days and make breakfast like I used to. On days I do work, I choke down dry cereal in the car or nibble on a breakfast sandwich or something equally portable on my way to work. Who in the world is hungry at 5:30 in the morning?!

Anyway, today was a nice lazy morning.  The hubs is on vacation so he didn't get up early shuffling around the bedroom. I worked yesterday and will be back at work tomorrow, but I'm off today.  Naturally, the kids are on summer vacation and have no extra-curriculars today.  Woo-hoo!

I rolled out of bed a little after 9 a.m.  Delivery men showed up between 9:30 and 10 to deliver my husband's birthday gift (way long overdue living room furniture!). They were done in no time, so I headed to the kitchen with a "rumbly in my tumbly" and food on my mind.  Hmmm, I pondered what to make? Potatoes and onions with cheesy scrambled eggs? Pancakes and sausage patties? Muffins and fruit salad?  Ahhh, breakfast sweet breakfast. I finally decided on Cajun breakfast rice, sunrise blueberry muffins and a fruit salad with minted green tea or orange juice for brunch since morning was almost over. Anyway, here's my version of the recipe for the muffins...

Sunrise Blueberry Muffins

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

2 eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 cup vanilla yogurt

2 tsp (or so) grated orange peel (zest)

Glaze (optional)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 Tbsp milk

2-3 drops almond extract (lemon or vanilla would probably work fine, too)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 12-cup muffin pan (I sprayed with baking spray just before filling them).

Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

In a small mixing bowl, beat eggs and add oil, yogurt and orange peel. Mix well.  Add to flour mixture stirring just until moist.  Gently fold in blueberries being careful not to crush them.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling them about 3/4 full. Bake 12 to 14 minutes (until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean). Cool slightly (I removed the muffins from the pan and placed them on a cooling rack with wax paper underneath)

Meanwhile, prepare glaze by combining powdered sugar, milk and flavor in a small bowl and mixing with a rubber spatula until smooth. Drizzle over cooled muffins. Enjoy!

*I normally split a warm muffin and slather real butter on it, but I refrained since these have the glaze drizzled on them.

Two in One Fun

Today is May 28, 2011 and I have not posted a thing since Easter Sunday. Shame on me. Today was busy but in a most fun way. My friend Angie texted me earlier this week that a couple of our friends were coming in town for the weekend and asked if my schedule would permit me to join them for brunch, dinner, drinks, or whatever else they were getting into. My work days this week were Sunday, Monday, Friday, so I texted her back that I was not working on Saturday. I got my hopes all up just thinking of a "girls day out." I honestly cannot remember the last time I've been out with just the girls. In all honesty, it was probably when we went to Cancun for Chermain's 40th birthday a couple few years back. Then, I got home and remembered that Saturday would be Alisa's dance recital beginning with a dress rehearsal from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. then a return by 5:30 for the show from  6:30 to 9:00 p.m. I figured Sunday was out of the question, too, since I've worked every Sunday since I started working back in February. I told Angie to keep me posted on whatever plans were brewing but I let her know that my chances of participation were getting slimmer by the minute...

(L) Gina, Angie, Melissa; (R)  Sandi, Chermain & me

The next generation of besties!

Well, as it turns out I got to meet "the girls" for Mexican food (they chose a restaurant near my house and all came my way) between the dress rehearsal and the recital. I didn't know the "mini-me's" were included or I would have brought Alisa. Then, I enjoyed an evening of tap, jazz, ballet and contemporary dance at the recital...Alisa had already changed out of her costume after her last performance, but we took a couple of pics anyway.

Here are Alisa's faithful subjects: Aunt Shannon, Leyla, Aaron, Xavier and Tia. Her dad and I were in attendance as well. I was behind the camera. Don't know where the hubs ducked off to. Below are Alisa and her brother and cousins again. She did a great job in both of her numbers. I'll have to try to post a couple of her costume pics on here at some point. For now, I must turn in. Tomorrow is my first Sunday off since I began working back in February, and I need to be well rested so I don't fall asleep during mass. Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. Until next time...

He is Risen!

I hope everyone had a most blessed Easter holiday.  I had to work and we were short staffed because several employees called in, but it was a good day. I sure miss attending church services, and will be so glad when I can schedule my own work days!
Here is an "oldie but goody" frm Sandi Patti that I always think of when Easter rolls around.  I hope you click on the link and enjoy it as much as I do year after year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpIC0d_3bWo&playnext=1&list=PL4BC645F0CB6D37A7

Best day yet!

Well, folks, I knew the day would come when I could actually blog about a GOOD day at work.  Actually, any day is a good day at work since I truly love taking care of my patients.  Sometimes it's just frustrating because I'm not great at time management and prioritizing tasks and such so it feels like I'm running all day long without food, drink or potty relief only to still be behind at day's end. Yesterday, was no such day, let me tell you!
I wasn't working with my preceptor because she took on the role of charge nurse, so I was with another nurse.  We had four patients between the two of us.  I took 3 and she took one. (That's the brakes folks when you're a newbie resident!)  I was actually able to get all of my assessments done and charted and morning meds passed before my lunch break, which was around 1:30 (vs the 3 and 4 o'clock lunches I've been taking). I returned from lunch and discharged one of my patients and was actually caught up enough to admit another, but that patient ended up going somewhere else, so I just had the two patients at the end of the day.  I clocked out around 6:55 p.m. versus 7:10 or even 8:00 I clocked out one day last week! Aahh, did that feel good.  I'm so looking forward to many more days like that and even better.  I needed that little boost of confidence because it's time for me to move up to four patients, and before yesterday, I could barely manage with three.  Keep those prayers coming, friends. I've come a long way, but still have so far to go.

Five Question Friday -15 April 2011

Aaarrrggghh! It's tax day! Only not really because for some reason the government has extended the deadline to Monday, April 18th...go figure. I also don't really have to panic because my taxes are already done (as of Wednesday, that is LOL!) Seems like last year we had already filed, received and spent our income tax return well before April 1st.  Anyway, I digress...
Fridays just don't seem complete without those five little questions from Mama M at My Little Life! Feel free to join the fun if you please. The rules are simple: copy and paste the original questions to a new post on your blog then answer them. Pop back over to My Little Life and add your blog to the list so others can check out what you have to say about the questions...here goes. Feel free to answer any or all of the questions in the comments below.

1. What is your favorite sign of spring?

That's a toss up between all of the trees budding and the winter weather giving way to warmer breezes characteristic of spring 

2. What was your best birthday ever?

My sister might be offended if I don't say the surprise "prom" birthday party she threw for my 40th birthday, but I think my 25th birthday was definitely one of my favorites.  I was back stateside from my Peace Corps assignment in Honduras.  I decided to travel out east via Amtrak to see some of America and visit friends I had met in Peace Corps. So, I spent my 25th birthday footloose and fancy free doing the things I loved: traveling and spending time with friends.  They even hosted a potluck dinner on my behalf and someone brought home-made cinnamon ice cream! A perfect segue into the next question...

3. What is your favorite dessert?

Cake (7-up cake or white cake, white frosting) and ice cream. I'm not ruling out all of the other scrumdiddylumptious affairs...I love a good cheesecake, cookie, cupcake, pie or cobbler, too!

4. What is the best excuse you've ever used to get out of a ticket?

Remember that question some weeks back about being superstitious? Well, I'm going to knock on wood before I answer this one. I've never had to use an excuse to get out of a ticket. I did get pulled over once by Officer Jack, the police that had just visited the Parent's Day Out program where I worked. I thought if I painted a big smile on my face and greeted him with a sweep of my open-palmed hand in a circular motion and a "Hi, Officer Jack" like he taught the kids, he may have mercy on me. He was only pulling me over because he noticed my registration was expired. I had the new tag in the car with me and was waiting until I went to the dealership to get my oil changed so they could deal with the sticky mess of removing the old one and applying the new one.  Officer Jack reached in, swiped the old sticker off in one swoop, stuck the new sticker on and sent me on my way. No ticket (or need for excuses) involved!

5. Do you wake up before your alarm, with your alarm, or after hitting snooze several times?

I've recently discovered that I like the nice soothing alarm tone on my cell phone so I've been setting that.  However, I usually wake up before my alarm(s) go off then doze back off until I hear the chimes.

Five Question Friday -08 April 2011

It's late, but it's officially still Friday in my neck of the woods, so I thought I'd go ahead and post/answer the questions for Mama M's Five Question Friday.  I won't bother with all of the rules and links and such as it's pretty much a done deal (well, okay, I'll link <this space> back to Mama M's blog just in case you want to pay her a visit, which I highly recommend).  Anyway, tomorrow is a work day, so I shan't tarry.  Here goes...

1. If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?

I could write a list of things I'd change, however, in the interest of time (and the fact that the question clearly states ONE thing)...I'd change my "tendency-toward-procrastination-poor-time-management-disorganization" flaw.

2. Write about a time when you got lost.

Years ago, I learned on PBS that homing pigeons have this thing in their brains that lets them go out on a mission and find their way back home. Well, thank goodness I'm not a pigeon because I don't think I have one of those. I can get lost going in and out of stores in the mall--not that I subject myself to that torture very often. When I was in high school, a friend got me a temp job at DFW international Airport. The day before I was to report to work I decided to take a test drive so I'd know where I was going. Thank heavens I did.  Not only did I NOT realize there was a south entrance and north entrance to the airport, but I didn't know which one I had used to get where I was. I found where I was supposed to go without incident, but on the return trip home I must have looped back and forth for an hour before I finally got my bearings and made it home trembling, broke and out of gas.

 

3. Camping or 5 star hotel?

Each has it's place. On the whole, I'm kind of a country girl at heart and really enjoy camping with my kids (in my parents' pop up tent if that counts).

4. Have you donated blood?

I donated blood many moons ago when I was in college and received a follow up letter informing me that my blood had been destroyed because it contained some antibodies or something and I was ineligible to donate ever again.  Many moons later I went with my hubs to give blood and they asked if I'd like to donate, too.  I explained my predicament, but they let me donate anyway.  I got a similar letter in the mail and have not donated blood again since.

5. Do you have a budget or do you 'fly by' most months?

For the past umpteen years we haven't had enough money to budget. I just paid what bills I could and then rolled the unpaid ones over to the next month and prayed for the hubs to work some extra shifts or something.  Now that I'm working and we're crawling out of that downward spiral and looking toward college planning, etc, I foresee a budget in our near future.

Whew! That was fun and now I'm done...in about 30 minutes. That may just be a blog record for me! Good night my friends. Until next time...

Not so fond memories

Ever had one of those "accidents" where you know you'd laugh if only you could have seen yourself in slow motion?  Well, I had one today, folks!  It had to do with the swimming pool in our back yard, but first let me give you a little background on said pool.
When we bought our house, we were NOT looking for a home with a pool in the yard.  We just happened to like everything else about the home and thought the pool would be an added bonus. Well, years later we have come to see the pool as a bonus all right: Biggest Old Nuisance Under the Sun!  Sorry if it sounds like I'm whining to all of you who have pools and love them or those of you who wish you had a pool but don't. We actually love the pool but hate the expense and maintenance mainly because money has always been tight. Hopefully, we'll enjoy it a lot more now that we can better afford the tools and things we need to keep it running smoothly.
Anyway, let me get back to today...We had Ray, the one and only "pool guy" that has served us well over the years, out to replace a pipe that was cracked in the big snow storm last February (as in 2010 - we didn't even bother cleaning or running the pool all last summer if that gives you an idea of how much grunge was on the bottom of the pool).  Ray brought his pumps and helped us drain the water from the pool.  There was no way we could think of turning on the pump and attempting to suck water through the filter at this point.  I had on an old pair of shorts and a t-shirt and flip flops.  Well, I walked down the steps into the now empty shallow end of the pool with a five gallon bucket and a plastic dust pan in hand to scrape the algae/decomposed leaves/marine life mixture off the bottom of the pool. When my flip flop hit the sludge, it refused to stay in one place. I cannot even recount with any degree of accuracy what actually happened.  All I know was my flip flop slid and so did I and the next thing I know I'm flat on my back in the gunk and Mike is asking if I'm okay.  I'll recount my injuries and have you figure out the rest: I scraped the skin off of the top of my right foot (almost like a burn), bumped my right knee, scratched my right forearm, hit my left elbow and the back of my head hit the bottom step on the way down.  Ouch! Now, I do remember that part.  Luckily, nothing was broken or in need of stitches.  I marched inside, showered the gunk off, applied some antibiotic ointment and a couple of band-aids to the scrapes, took an Advil and strapped an ice pack to the goose egg on the back of my head before heading back outdoors to resume helping with the "Project Let's Get this Pool Up and Running."  I took the less hazardous job of spraying down the gunk from the safety of the deck around the pool, thank you very much.
This is yet another story I can add to my "not so fond memories" of our swimming pool.  Another story involved me vigorously brushing the deep end when all of a sudden the pole I was using decided to telescope into a shorter version of itself throwing me off balance.  I didn't let go in time and ended up doing a cartwheel over the pole into the deep end.  I somehow scraped something on the edge of the pool that time, too, but I wasn't seriously harmed.  I remember thinking, "Good thing the neighbors didn't see that!" as I emerged sputtering from the water and dragged myself out of the pool.
Shouldn't I have fond memories of kids with paddle boards and goggles playing Marco-Polo and me floating lazily on an inflatable raft sipping a root beer over Sonic ice?  Maybe this summer...maybe!
Until next time, my friends