yuM with a capital MMMMM..... :)

So here are my two new favorite recipes. Healthy, lots of protein. Try them out and tell me what you think. :) I'm thinking about putting a recipe book together of healthy food that you can make a part of your everyday life without feeling like you are eating "diet" food. If we do the book on Blurb.com people can actually make contributions to the book with their favorite recipes. How fun would that be???

*note-sorry the measurements aren't exact. These came from the food network, with a few minor tweaks. They don't always say how much of something they are doing. Next time I make them I am going to try to measure so I have an exact recipe. But every time I have made these so far they have turned out great!

Tuna Bread Salad. mmmmm......
(this is from 10 minute meals on food network)

1 shallot finely chopped
big handful of cherry tomatoes cut in half (u be the judge on how much you like)
1 can tuna-recommended that you get the higher grade can. Still less than $2
Cubed stale baguette
1 can white beans-rinsed and drained
handful of kalamata olives  (I used green too!)

Put all these ingredients into a bowl

In salad dressing shaker...

In salad dressing shaker put a couple TBSP dijon mustard, some balsamic vinegar, S &P .
Pour over salad and add more olive oil if needed.



Bistro Bacon Salad

Mixed greens
Couple pieces of cooked bacon crumbled for each person (center cut bacon only has 70 calories in 3 slices!)
1 egg per person....heat skillet on MED, crack egg into pan...mess yolk up a little. Flip when bottom side is cooked. S&P if you'd like. Add a little Parmesan or hard cheese if you'd like.
*put egg on cutting board and cut into pieces

In a salad shaker combine Dijon mustard with balsamic vinegar, S & P and pour over mixed greens, toss to coat salad and serve onto plates. Add bacon and egg to each plate.

Note: We added mushrooms to this salad and really liked the addition

30 Days Without Water

Ok so I didn't really go 30 days without water but that is basically what you're telling me when you ask me to go 30 whole days without candy! I probably used to consume more candy than water on any given day. Wow...that thought is embarrassing and I should erase that but maybe that's part of the recovery process. Admitting you have a problem. :)

Just after Christmas I got sick. Literally had sores inside my throat. Even had a sore dangling on my dangling thing. (So sayeth the ER doc) So 2 days of sickness pass and I realize that I never had candy. 2 whole days and I didn't even think of candy! It's a miracle! Then....the cravings started. I thought to myself, "You've gone 2 whole days without it....maybe now's the time to try for longer." Then I mention it to Justin who is totally on board with the idea and then I make the stupid mistake of then mentioning it to 240 "friends" on facebook.

I consider myself to be somewhat of a perfectionist. I can def. be fast and sloppy when I am trying to get things done. (take cooking for example....I ALWAYS SPILL and I don't always measure) but as far as saying I will do something or saying I am capable of something...now that has to be lived up to. So I told my facebook posse and that was that.

Later during one of my "I'm gonna die if I don't have candy" meltdowns I had to decide how long I was going to go without candy. This indefinite amount of time was all too discouraging. Justin mentions 30 days. What??!!!!! Are you crazy??!!! Is that even possible!!??? Ok 30 days. Why not. Highs and lows people.

So today is officially day 31. I'm not lying either. I didn't count weekends as double or skip ahead a few days. I didn't sneak candy into my bedroom at night or scarf it down in the car after a grocery trip. I, Rose Langham, did not have candy for 30 ENTIRE days.

I, Rose Langham, am a recovery candyaholic who is going to eat candy tonight. You heard me.

The greatest invention....

If anyone has not yet discovered the non-slip ultra skinny hanger you are missing out! I have a super small closet. In fact, all of my husband's clothes have to be hung up in another super small closet and my dresses in yet another one. One day at Marshall's while I was waiting in line I notice these hangers. But...they were a little too expensive and I passed them up. I never stopped thinking about them. I kept imagining extra space in my closet, the ability to look at a shirt on a hanger without having to use my body weight to push the other clothes away from it. Then I ran across these same hangers at Tuesday Morning. They were an even better deal than Marshalls so I couldn't pass them up. I am ashamed to say that when all was said and done I did spend a ridiculous amount on hangers but can I just say that I no longer scream at my closet. Oh the space it gave me!!! It's a miracle. They were so effective that despite the cost JUSTIN wants me to buy some for his closet. WHAT??? (*insert brake screeching noise*) Justin wants me to purchase something? To spend money on something because it is helpful and not because it is totally necessary? (although if you ask me they qualify for both.)

So if you aren't yet convinced don't forget that they are also non-slip. How many times have you pulled a shirt off a hanger in your over crowded closet and had the 2 shirts next to it come tumbling down. Stupid slippery hangers. Errrr. These hangers are non-slip, they have a dip in the sides for skinny straps but you won't even need them.

Go get them people!! Run! They are going fast! I went back for more and half of them were gone! You won't regret it. Not when you then have room to buy more clothes. :)

Christmas at the Langhams

Mom, Jordan and Chris all came down from Oregon for Christmas. Par-TAY! We had so much fun. Even more fun because my friend Laurel also joined us. We had our annual pajama opening on Christmas eve. We played this game we call "telepic" which was madly funny and I cried laughing several times. I'm pretty sure that's good for the soul. Chris brought his wii and we were pretty obsessed with his new game "raving rabbids." I was the master at the shooting games. Go figure. :) Jordan built me a new craft shelf and everyone helped with it. *special*

We went on a lot of walks. Percy went on the most. Whoever went took Percy with them. Mom took Percy on a walk without knowing that when we get back to the gate, he gets his dreaded leash off and then goes through. (*side note-he hates his leash because Justin has dropped it multiple times, it crashes to the ground and bounces behind him like its going to get him. So yeah..he's not a fan) So mom gets to the gate and Percy doesn't want to go in. Hello! You're supposed to take my leash off first! She coaxes him through and then here comes Percy into the house, tail between his legs hiding under the dining room table. Mom....still holding leash. Too funny. Poor Percy. Grandma didn't know! She does let you stop ALL the time and pee on stuff. That's makes it better right??

Mom and I ditched the guys one day and went antique shopping. FAVORITE! She made me go inside some stores I had previously passed by thinking they were the hoity toity kind but they were actually awesome (past the front window of china). I got a plate holder to hold my craft magazines. I love it when find something useful and decorative all in one. I love it even more when it only costs $5 bucks!

Let see...what else did we do. We went out to eat several times. Had pizza all but once. Ha! Don't ask. We went to a natural springs park in Ponce De Leon which was massively flooded and a total dud. Boo.

For New Years Eve we went to Mellow Mushroom---only the best pizza place in the world. I was totally psyched that everyone wanted my top 2 choices. Yes! Mom and Jordan brought cards to play that funny telepic game....which we did...at the table. Then before we left Jordan wanted to embarrass Chris so he asked the waitress to take a picture. Not of us. WITH us. Oh dear. Then my mom picked out some of the telepic cards and left them with the waitress' tip. I had to weed through them. "No, we aren't leaving a random drawing of a gun. She's not going to know it was about duck hunting, we are only going to freak her out." Lol. I wrote underneath one of the cards, "sorry my parents are so weird." I had to. I was embarrassed to the max. Then I was going to go use the restroom and they said they would meet me outside. I get into the bathroom and realize....the waitress is going to get her tip and all the dumb drawings and I will have to do the walk of shame out of there all by myself. Pee fast! I hurried out but my family was still there. Yay!!! Ok they were there minus Jordan. So we went out to the car leaving Jordan to do the walk of shame. muhahhahaha.

If you know anything about my family you know from time to time we have a phrase or quote that we just can't let die. One time it was "bling bling." So this time Mom and Jordan and Chris all came saying quotes from Anjela Johnson's stand up comedy. Look it up. Aaamazing. One was "mo betta fo u." (must be said with asian accent) The others were "rue" "security." *the UR sounds like ER (must be said with ghetto accent). The all time best use of these all week was when some teenage boy called mom, thinking it was Chris (so this boys little sister has a crush on Chris...I think that's where this was coming from) and proceeded to cuss my mom out. My mom's response? "rue" "security"

Oh one last thing...how could I forget?? Justin and I both cut the tips of our thumbs. Justin actually cut his off. Mine came off later. What a nightmare. Justin randomly got 2 paring knives for Christmas. One from me and one from Jordan. They just so happened to be the exact same knife. Same color even. So I'm cutting tomatoes and slice my thumb. I jump up and down, hooping and hollering. No one is reacting to me. What in the world??? Blood people!!! I think maybe they did react sooner and I was just in slow motion. Justin bandaged me up and continues his onion cutting. I'm sitting at the table with my back turned to him and hear. "I think I just cut part of my thumb off. Yep its right there on the cutting board." Slightly different reaction than mine. I should be embarrassed but I'm not. He throws his tip away only to later dig it out of the trash, clean it real good and put it back on his thumb. Nope...I did not just make that up. True story.

The family left Jan 1st, despite our pleas to stay longer. We prayed for delayed flight or options to stay behind for overbooking. Nada. See you in September. It can't come soon enough!

My how the time has flown by

Wow. I haven't written in my blog in months. I think the first downfall was a craft fair and the 2nd downfall was the 2nd craft fair. Don't get me wrong...huge success but what a nightmare. I am officially sick of crafting and crossing my fingers I get the warm fuzzies back soon because I have stuff to make.

At both fairs I choose random classrooms for my booth instead of the main gyms. It allowed me wall space which is a huge score. I think lots of people came and never made it past the gyms but whatever...I don't think I could have handled more business. The second craft fair would have been fun if it weren't for one of the 2 booths in the room with me. There were these ladies selling those dumb purse hooks. They were hard core. They had a spot right at the door and I was in the back. They would attack people as soon as they came in. They would ask, "have you ever seen a purse hook before?." Answer always *annoyed stare* "yes." Then they would say, "But you haven't seen ours before." AHHHHH. They were charging like 30 bucks plus shipping (apparently they are on back order---likely story) for a purse hook that is also...wait for it....purse jewelry. Barf. People would listen for 2 seconds, realize they were major sales people in the room and back on outta there. It was the place I did the craft fair at last year and I did have people coming in all frantic saying, "I found you! I was hoping you were here!" That made me feel good.

Can I just say a little side note about craft fairs?? If you ever go...don't ask questions about HOW someone makes their craft and then follow up with, "Oh, cause I have stuff like this at home and I've always wanted to do something like that." Funniest moment at the craft fairs was when his one family was at my booth and the Mom says "I could do that." Dad says, "No you can't" and slips a business card into his pocket. Priceless. My new answer when people ask questions is going to be (with a smile of course) "Its top secret."

One of the great but NOT SO GREAT happenings at the craft fair in Niceville was my discovery of THE SCONE. I had never met the scone before. For some reason I had always had it in my head that Biscotti was scones. Hard and tasteless. At the craft fair the church made fresh scones. I believe the flavors were cranberry and blueberry/white chocolate and they were delivered hot and to die for. What is not so great about THE SCONE is that I have since looked up how to make them and have made them more than once. They are amazing. They very much need to be on my "special occasion" list and not my everyday breakfast list. Darn you scones and your sweet power.

I currently only have one window left to make and emails of upcoming craft shows that I am dreading. Watch me decide last minute to do it. I'll let you know. :)

BUGS, you BUG me!

So here's a little story for you.

I open my car door to leave for the grocery store. A bug gets in first. It was like I was opening the door for him. I have never seen this kind of bug before but it was FAST. He flew in, landed in the dashboard and then ran up the dashboard and parked it where he was in the crack/corner where the dash meets the windshield. There was no way I was going to get to him there.

I leave fingers crossed, hoping that he will just stay where he is.

I'm driving along mointoring the bug, so far so good. He is staying in one place.

I get through the gate on base and the bug deceides it's time to change seats. He runs across the dashboard, driver's side no less and straight for me. I had just past the gate so my military ID is still in hand and I trying my hardest to smash the bug with my ID card. I missed and he jumped from the dash down onto my pants. All the while I am DRIVING. So then I am trying to watch the road and smash the bug on my pants. *khakis-probably will leave a stain....who cares! Die bug!* Then he went under my leg and disappeared out of sight. There is no where to turn off the road and I have to just keep driving. We stop at a light and I frantically move my hands around, slapping my own back and wiping under my legs. I can't find the bug and it's worse than knowing where the bug is and watching it.

Finally I pull over and into the bank parking lot. Jump out like a maniac or like someone with a bee in her car, have a mild panic attack and search high and low for that darn bug never to find him or his remains. I bet he's still there. Looks like Justin is going to be doing some cleaning the car out before I get back in.

Does anybody else have the heebidee jeebidees??

P.S. Dear person who designed the base streets. All your "No left turn" signs REALLY piss me off. Especially when I had to pull over for a bug and had to get back on the road driving the WRONG direction for no good reason at all.

Test Results....never fun. Ever.

Ever have to wait on results from a test? Aren't the worst waits when its for something medical? I swear the hspoitals get the results back the same day you are there but they just dilly dally around and tell you whenever they think of it. I actually had to call the hospital and say, "um hello?! I was supposed to hear from you guys last week, now its THIS week." Do they call me back right away? No....they say 1-3 business days and TAKE all 3 to do it. Seems like if they are already late in calling they should be required to call you right then. I hate hospitals. I hate doctors and I HATE HATE HATE students in the lab. Why should a student get to practice on me with a needle? Justin has the guts to say he refuses to let a student prick him but not me. I just take it and suffer the consequences.
So...needless to say 3 whole weeks after I was told 1-2 days for my results I finally got them this morning. I had an ultra sound done because I was having really bad pains in my lower abdomen and they lasted 2 weeks. I have had one done before and they found a cyst in my left ovary. Neat. I had a 2nd to check up on it and it was smaller and now it is gone. Yay!

Hold the applause. Now I have a NEW one in my right ovary and not only that I have a fibroid in my utterus. Oh happy day. A fibroid is a tumor. Usually benign. They are known to cause heavy periods, frequent urination, lower stomach pain, enlargement of the lower abdomen, pregnancy problems especially during birth and potentially infertility but its rare. AND some other stuff....the lists are always ridiculously long and not worth repeating. I think they have to include anything anyone ever said was a symptom. I think someone could say "I can't stop hiccuping and it started when I got a fibroid," and then it has to appear on the symptoms list. *NO...hiccups wasn't on there.*

News like this is depressing. Especially because Justin and I have been trying to have a baby for a few years now. When you have never been prego before and you get wierd symptoms in your lower stomach your mind starts racing and you act like a crazy person until its soon enough to take a pregnancy test. You have usually taken one too soon despite the warnings that its not effective but you just can't help it. I knew when I went to the doctor I wasn't pregnant. That's like the first thing they check even if I come in with a hurt toe. Ok...not really but it seems like it. But to get news that has to do with your "baby parts" and its not "your pregnant" is never fun to hear.

I'm 27 and I know I have "TONS OF TIME" to have a baby but its is so hard watching all your friend's families grow and NOT KNOW if yours ever will. I have stopped saying "If we ever have a baby" and now say "when we have a baby, cause we can always adopt." But still...my attitude in general sucks as of late and I am working on it. If people could stop asking if I am prego or when I am due that would sure help. If people could stop asking me "so, when are you guys gonna have a kid?" like its totally an option to choose when you get pregnant, that would also help. I don't think I will ever get over the extra cheesyness some moms dish out into the world. When their screen names are "mommysavesbig" "Carsonsmommy" and "soproudtobeamommy" I want to barf. I do however LOVE to spend time with my friends babies and love to watch them grow even if it is a little sad. I am so happy for them and glad to have friends I can talk about health drama with.

So I am going to the OBGYN for more info on my fibroid and probably just more guessing and more waiting. Keep your fingers crossed for me. Or...say a little prayer. That might work better. :)