there are about 20 other things i should be doing right now...

oh well.

what's a little procrastination and a later bedtime every now and...every DAY. ;P

barefoot in the kitchen is still going strong.

i recently made ina's croque monsieur. (if you're a book junkie, you can also find this in her Barefoot in Paris cookbook).

think of it as grilled cheese, inside out. hmmm, except there's technically cheese inside, too. so, it's like and inside AND outside grilled cheese. (no, it's not burned. just nicely browned in the pan. seriously!).



okay, so where am i going with this? patience, my friend. (yes, you'll have to tolerate the dark pictures taken with my phone at hand. again...witching hour does not lend itself to a safe camera environment).

the efforts to put this together were minimal. the taste was extraordinary.

one of my friends was over that evening and can vouch. she can also take credit for handling the 5 pm crazies that my kids dish out...totally helps speed up dinner production. =)

on a whim, i also served up ina's jalepeno cheddar cornbread. WOW.

amazing. i've always relied on my super-special, hyper-secret cornbread recipe. tried and true. *ahem*. um, you know, the one found on the back of the quaker yellow cornmeal canister. ;-) yeah, that one. which i love...a little on the sweet side of cornbread, which is great. contrasts nicely with spicy mexican, if you're up for that sort of thing (and we are huge mexican cuisine fans here...well, minus the kids on that one). this recipe was right up there, though. it is made in a 9x13 pan. why the emphasis? because you will have a lot left over if you're making this for only a couple of people. and, even if you refrigerate it, you only have a few days to use up the leftovers. so, just make a mental note.

other stuff. oh, quick layout i did of james's storytime favorites. thank goodness i had this picture. i may have been scratching my head for awhile trying to think of what they actually were at 18 months as he's well into his 2's.

details of the layout and materials used can be found on my post here.

things on the scrapbooking front my take a slow down. this week was a big one as i started a new photography class, taught by wendy schultz. i'm really psyched about it. on the flip side, my free time (what's that again?) is going to be spent on the assignments and tutorials. which are sizeable. a wee bit longer than the ones from karen russell's class. i'm nervous. it's a big endeavor for me. i also don't have a clue what i'm doing (always a good feeling). i'm branching out into new territory, trying things on shaky legs because they're unfamiliar. but, it's what i have to do to be better...

slight confession: i may still use some of the extra time i find in a day to - oh, i don't know - rip down the awesome pink paisley wallpaper border in my bedroom. (i'm too embarrased to show a picture of my room because of the pink hideousness...and, well, frankly my room is a mess at the moment).

NO I DID NOT PUT IT UP THERE.

the former owners did. along with the pink carpeting in the same room.

seriously, what guy is OK with this? i'm thinking that the wife wore the pants in that relationship, BIG TIME. or he just didn't give a...well, you know.

(and if i've offended anyone out there...my apologies...but, pink bedrooms are not my thing...unless i'm all of a sudden a tween again).

anyway, i've managed to spend 4 years (that's right) ignoring it. i'm sure it would've been less if i actually had one ounce of decorating prowness. it's taken me awhile to settle on a style, color scheme, etc. but, i think i've reached it...

in time for me to start another photography class. =)