LUCKY GAL

That's what I am.

Look what I get to snuggle up to at night - a hubby who is reading (insert fanfare here) and a baby puppy curled up under our bed.  Does it get any better than that?!

Hubby's only flaw is he's not a reader.  He finished The Catcher in the Rye on the way home from Florida and it only took him...TWO YEARS to complete.  This isn't a large book, people.  After some quick calculations we figured he had read one page every three days for the last two years.  Sad.  Just sad.  I asked him constantly over the course of our vacation to start reading The Hunger Games (alright, fine...I nagged).  I knew he would love it - wilderness survival, hunting, politics, love...  Finally he conceded and I think he is enjoying it more than he lets on.  This is the first book I have ever seen him read without my constant persuasion.

We had a moment the other day.  Watching tv, a movie trailer came on featuring Josh Hutcherson, the boy cast as Peeta.  I told hubby this actor would be playing Peeta in The Hunger Games movie and added he doesn't look like the Peeta I picture in my head.  "Not at all.  I picture him to be much bigger and stronger," said my husband.  My husband.  The man who does not read for fun.  Sigh.  I think I fell in love a little.

And that takes me back to how I found my boys in bed this week.  One under the covers reading (without being nagged) and the other in their favourite spot under the bed.  [And yes - we have a very high bed.]

NANNIE-RONIS

Pronounced: Nan-ee-row-nees
From the Italian word: macaroni

I always call homemade mac n cheese "Nannie-ronis" because my Nannie always made this dish when I was a kid.  Still one of my favourite meals I sometimes make it for our lunches and this week I cooked it with a twist!

You will need:

1 1/2 cups of macaroni

1 tbsp butter or margarine

1 tbsp flour

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 green chili pepper (chopped and seeded)

3 pieces of bacon

1 cup of cheddar cheese

2 cups of milk

Cook the macaroni in a boiling pot of water until tender.  Drain, rinse, and set aside.

Fry the bacon, remove from the pan, and coarsely chop.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Add the chili pepper and cook for a few minutes.  Mix in the flour as a thickener and stir until smooth.  Add the milk and turn the burner up to medium-high heat.  When the milk is warm, grate and stir in the cheddar cheese.  Allow the cheese to melt.  Add the black pepper and bacon.

Place the macaroni into ramekins and pour the cheese sauce over top.  You may add a few cubes of cheddar cheese to this if desired.  Also, you may sprinkle breadcrumbs or crumbled soda crackers on top.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until the cheese is bubbly.  Make sure you don't leave it in too long or the macaroni will be a bit crunchy.

ALOHOMORA

This summer a friend of mine thought she wanted a tattoo of Hermione's wand.  (Yes, you read that correctly - and she knows who she is.)

To prevent this from happening I made her a painting for her birthday to try to satisfy her tattoo craving.  It's water colour and pen on paper.



Hermione's wand.  Original watercolour.

MY BEST FRIENDS

Some of my best friends are books.  I have fond memories of laying in my "reading chair" in my parents' living room with my feet on the wall reading for hours.  My grandparents lived 7 hours from my family and I often spent the entire drive engrossed in a book.  Often I had two or three on the go and would finish a chapter in one just to move onto the next novel.

My parents might account my poor eyesight to my love of reading, actually.  This is because when I was supposed to be asleep I would read by the light of my nightlight so they couldn't tell I was still awake.  It became a bit of a problem...

In kindergarten I read books to my classmates.  In grade one I finished The Babysitter's Club series.  In grade two I read The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White and the Little House on the Prairie books.  From there I went on to tackle Nancy Drew, The Chronicles of Narnia, Harry Potter, The Phantom Tollbooth, and many more!  As I said before - some of my best friends are books!

If you can also be found late at night saying, "Just one more page!", hiding your current novel under the desk during lecture, gabbing non-stop to whoever will listen about, "This great book I just read!" then you need to watch this video.  It will make your heart happy.

HAVE A SEAT

There's something about a chair, isn't there?

Maybe it's because they come in every shape imaginable.  Or maybe because they can be any colour, pattern, or print you can envision (like these ones I had made).  Perhaps still it's because they serve a practical purpose.  Whatever the reason, I love them and one day hope to have a chair in every room (bathrooms, bedrooms, kitchen)...  Here are a few vintage chairs I have found during my online travels.



Find here.

Find here.

Find here.