Day 10 and 11/11/11

Last night I was so tired that I started posting day 10 of my thankfulness series and ended up pushing the save button instead of "publish"....so today is two for one day on my blog! :D

November 10th.  Today I am thankful for working with several amazing women.  Granted, everywhere you go in life there is going to be some "drama" where you work, especially when you work with a lot of women, or in my case, only women.  There have been some very tough times at my school involving "dramatic" or at a minimum, drama loving women.  But these days the mix is getting better.  Less drama, more camaraderie......more dancing and less standoffishness.  I have always gone through life trying to help anyone when they needed a hand, offering a smile and hello when people pass me by...but the older I get the more I learn that apparently I am one of those rare people.  For a while it felt like I was outnumbered by more negative attitudes than positive attitudes where I work and honestly, that's not healthy for anyone, especially where I work, around children!  No one picks up on feelings more than children.  You could be smiling and THINK you are acting normal and then one of your students comes up to you and says, "Mrs. Jessica, what's wrong?" Somehow they know....children ALWAYS know.  If you think your child can't sense when you are stressed out, or if something is going wrong with you, your family or household, you are very wrong.  That's another post though....

At any rate, what I am getting at here is, there's more sunshine than rain lately around our school and it truly makes my life and my job a whole lot easier.  To Thuy, Aleta and Melissa....I'm so thankful that I work with such wonderful women as you.  Now if ONLY one of my dearest friends Caitlin could be working with me again, that would make my life complete.  But she and I have future plans as far as THAT is concerned. ;)
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November 11th.  On this magical day 11/11/11, I am thankful for the wonderful, life changing music of Death Cab for Cutie (DCFC.)  Tonight I partook in one of my favorite pastimes.  I drove around in my car, playing my favorite tunes and singing along, loud and long.  This is my therapy.  This is how I unwind.  This is how I get pumped up for something.  This is my me time.  This is how I re-center myself after long weeks, like this one.  I discovered DCFC when I was 23 and to this day I am thankful to the person who introduced me to them.  Even though I no longer am in touch with that person for many reasons, I still think of them and that part of my life where I really began to find myself.  DCFC is sort of the soundtrack to myself since those days, and continues to be today as I approach my 27th birthday, in about one month.  This may sound far fetched to some people who read this, but I have a connection, story or vivid memory associated with each of DCFC's songs and I go to each song in turn at a moment, day or period of my life when I need to reconnect with that version of myself from back then in order to be....here.....now.  Thank you Death Cab.

A month of Thanks-giving

I saw that a Facebook friend of mine has been posting something she is thankful for as her status each day this month.  I really thought the idea was excellent but decided to steal it instead for use on my blog.....

Obviously I am several days behind in starting this new mini project so I am simply going to think back and list the things I was thankful for these past 7 days.  A lot has changed in my life in this first week of November, but I can think back to each of these days and tell you quiet easily what I was most thankful for each day.  If you read my previous post, they should be very easy for you to understand.

November 1st. I am thankful for webcams and Skype so I can see my husband who is now in Idaho for work :(

November 2nd. I am thankful for unlimited mobile to mobile cell phone minutes so that I can keep my husband on the phone all night long and be comforted by the fact that I can hear him snoring, and therefore I know he is sleeping soundly <3

November 3rd. I am thankful for websites like Hulu that allow me and my husband to watch our favorite tv shows together online, which brings smiles and laughter to both of us....which we especially need during this time.

November 4th. I am thankful for the love and support of my mother and my dear friends who got me through my first week of Vinnie's absence.  I am so blessed to have such an amazing mother who always knows the right things to say, and friends who can give me a hug over the phone, just as well as if they were standing right next to me.

November 5th. I am thankful for hot chocolate and whipped cream and how it always comforts me on cold mornings when I am alone or sad or both.

November 6th. I am thankful impromptu coffee dates with longtime friends. (Hugs to my girl Ashley!)

November 7th.  I am thankful for holiday scented potpourri tarts that make my room smell like Christmas and warm my heart while my love is away...

I know some of those things might be random, but the point of this whole exercise (in my opinion anyway) is to remind us all, that no matter what is happening in our lives right now, we all have things to be thankful for....and it's remembering to stop and be thankful that is most important of all, during this time of year, and the whole year through.

Mac & Cheese please!

I  have the world's BEST macaroni and cheese recipe EVER!  I'm not bragging I swear.  If you have eaten it, and many of you who are reading this blog post have, you will know I speak the truth.

Several dear friends of mine, who have recently moved to NC and TX, have been asking me for weeks (okay maybe months) to please send them this recipe.  So Caitlin, Nancy and George....this post's for you!  

But I figured I may as well share the love with everyone else while I'm at it. 

A little history behind this deelish dish:  

My dear friend and "other mother" as I call her, Karen, gave me this recipe about 2 years ago when I started down the road of "homemaker/wife/chef/etc).  It is her great grandmother's recipe, which makes it at least 50 years old.  It certainly has stood the test of time.  This is my favorite mac and cheese in the WORLD and I am picky about my mac.  Guess you could say I'm a connoisseur of sorts when it comes to comfort food.  Don't even get me started on mashed potatoes and gravy.....we could be here ALL day! 

On to the dish!  This following is the exact original recipe but I put a little bit of my own spins on it, as any good chef does.  My spins on the various parts of this dish will be in parentheses.  I hope you enjoy it.  

Fall is the perfect time to make mac & cheese for someone you love, or yourself. <3

World's Best Macaroni and Cheese:

Cook 1.5 cups of elbow macaroni (I use straight cut macaroni, but you can also use penne) in lightly salted boiling water til tender. Drain and set aside.  

In a large saucepan, melt 3 TBS of butter, then using a wooden spoon, blend in 2 TBS of all purpose flour, 1/2 tsp salt and a few dashes of pepper (to your taste).  If you use salted butter, leave out the 1/2 tsp of salt.

Add 2 cups of milk (you can use any milk you like, I always use 1 cup skim milk and 1 cup heavy cream, if I have it on hand....yes, this dish is fat free! haha) cook and stir constantly until THICK and BUBBLY.  

DO NOT WALK AWAY AT THIS STEP!  Yes, it's going to take a while for that cold milk to get hot and do it's magic in the pot to make this sauce, but I am telling you, the minute you turn your back it will scorch and you will be sad....and so will I.  Yes, I will know when  you are making this dish and I will know if you walk away.  I have a 6th sense about this dish.  Don't disappoint me! :) The mixture should coat the back of the wooden spoon and when you run your finger along the back, it should leave a distinct line.  

Now add 12 slices (8 oz) of processed American cheese singles (stacked and cubed).  Yes, good old Kraft (or generic) cheese singles.  You could use more expensive cheese or sharp cheddar if you wanted, but trust me, it tastes best with the Kraft singles.  That's the way Karen's grandmother intended it to be.....and once you taste this dish, you will see why.  Stir all the cheese in until melted and fully incorporated, then mix the sauce with the pasta and pour it into a 1.5 quart glass baking dish (then I like to top it with Italian seasoned breadcrumbs or panko breadcrumbs) and bake at 350 F degrees for 35-40 min or until browned at the edges and bubbly.  Serve!  

NOTE:  This recipe "serves 6" but I almost always make a double batch.  It reheats well, but I doubt there will be any left unless you are only making this for yourself.  I used to make this often to take to my neighbors for dinner and there were 5 of us.  I always made the double batch which is supposed to "serve 12".....and there was maybe a small corner left each time after we ate it.  For quick reference, I have written just the ingredient list below.  Cut and paste the instruction for this post into a word document and you will be all set! Happy Cooking and Happy Fall! 

Ingredients: 

1.5 cups macaroni (or similar pasta)

3 TBS butter

2 TBS AP flour

1/2 tsp salt

pepper to taste

2 cups of milk (or similar combination of milk and cream)

12 slices (8 oz) processed American cheese slices

1-1.5 cups breadcrumbs for topping (if desired) 

1.5 quart baking dish (or a 3 quart dish if you double the recipe)

xoxo

J Lo

What's the word?

Well the word is I haven't been on in a while to write and here's why.....


Some jobs I had recently applied for fell through, and that was hard for me to come to terms with.  Every time I get turned down for or from a job interview, I always get discouraged and feel like things will never change for me.  But I know that is not true, and my friends and family helped me refocus on that fact and move forward.  


The next thing that happened was that my father lost his job about 3 weeks ago.  That was scary, but it appears he will be okay (thanks to savings and social security) but he wants to work for a few more years anyway.  He has so many skills and such a great work record, that I'm sure he find something soon.


As if that wasn't enough, it came to pass about 2 weeks ago that my mother thought she might be losing her job. I thought that couldn't possibly happen since she had been working for nearly 4 years at the child development center she worked at.  Her parents loved her. NAEYC and ECERS were ALWAYS taken to her room when they came for visits and her work record was implacable.  She came in early, stayed late and often didn't get lunch, nor did she complain.  Well wouldn't you know it. All that hard work, time, dedication and care didn't account for anything apparently.  She lost her job this past Friday.


My husband, as many of you know, is still unemployed.  NASA all but "shutting down" didn't exactly help all the already unemployed people in his field.


At this moment.....I am the only one in my family who has a job.  And yet the student loan people who call me at 6am.....all the way until 10pm tell me they are "so sorry for my situation, but they have no more deferment or forbearance options"....despite the fact that my income places my husband and myself BELOW the poverty level.  


So.....needless to say my blog, which I love writing on, has not been the first thing on my mind as of late.  Yet, I promise you I am not here to complain or get a "pity party."  I just need to get all these worries and troubles off my chest and out of my hands and into this post.  


I can't help but feel, despite this scary place we are at right now, that God has something wonderful in store for us.  He knows all. He is great!  God has blessed me with a job when I could have none.  He has blessed me with my health.  He has blessed me with my wonderful, loving husband.  He has blessed me with dear true life-long friends and "soul sisters" who make bearing these burdens possible.  He has blessed me with my faith.  I will keep that faith and trust in Him to take care of what I cannot and to trust that I can handle what He gives me.  


Someone I work with is celebrating 15 years of being in remission from breast cancer.  I need to stop and remember that when everything seems hopeless, it could be a LOT worse.


This economy has made things hard for many people.  I have been lucky that my family has been overall, unaffected, until this month.  Things will get better again.  Things will be BETTER than before...  :D