Getting Back to Routine

I have been all out of sorts lately - well, maybe not out of sorts, but out of my routine. For those of you who know me in real life, you know I like my schedules. I live for calendars, organization and routine. I like knowing what's going on, what's coming up and what I need to ready myself for. But these past few weeks definitely have not lended themselves to a normal sense of organization, hence why I haven't been posting.

Nothing serious has occurred, but things have just been so crazy busy that I didn't have a moment, or the motivation to post on here. However, now that Thanksgiving has passed (and it was wonderful, and I do have a post coming up about it, I promise!) I'm looking forward to getting back into some kind of routine. I know that probably sounds crazy with Christmas less than a month away, but I think Christmas is actually going to be pretty calm and stress-free for us this year.

So two weekends ago, we went to St. Louis for my guy's cousin's wedding, which was absolutely lovely. We had a great time at home with the family, just hanging out, catching up and celebrating a new marriage. When we got back, we picked up our dog from the camp we board him at and got back to our lives. The dog seems to have been sick - not keeping his food down, lethargic, not eating on schedule (yet another schedule upset!) - which has keep me busy trying to figure out how to make him better, get him to eat, following him around the house with Resolve and a roll of paper towels etc.

Then, last weekend was my birthday. The hubs was able to be away from work all weekend, and we had a great time. I spent the morning at the spa, we watched a bunch of college football, made "game day" food - wings, onion rings, fries (basically anything that can be fried and dipped into some kind of sauce) and then repeated the lazy, football-watching on Sunday. Great weekend overall, but I didn't get anything done. I'm all for the lazy weekends to just hang out together and relax, but I also look to the weekends to get things accomplished -running errands, cleaning the house, etc.

So we had a short week last week due to Thanksgiving, but that meant trying to cram 5 days of work into two and a half - crazy! Plus getting ready to host our Thanksgiving potluck with 10 people, making my first turkey, handling the other dishes I was responsible for and ensuring I had everything needed (because I was NOT going to the store on Wednesday or Thursday for anything last-minute.)

Long story short (sort of), the past few weeks have been nuts between work, home, the holidays, the dog, traveling and more. I'm working on getting back into MY routine over the next few days and weeks and more regularly posting on here as well.

I realized I actually miss blogging about the cooking I've been doing, the new recipes I've been trying and how they're turning out. So, keep an eye out and I'll be back more regularly, as I'm building blogging into my routine.

Cheers!
Maureen

A Toast!

Welcome friends!

I'm excited to start a new adventure in blogging, which complements the other adventures I've recently embarked on - getting married, moving to a new city 1,700 miles away, getting a puppy and learning how to cook for two!



I've always had a bit of an interest in cooking - like other people have an interest in going to the dentist. I want it to be quick, as painless as possible and not leave a bad taste in my mouth. Before I got married, I subsisted on instant mashed potatoes and pasta. I love my carbs! Oh, and white wine. That's my go-to cocktail, which goes with both mashed potatoes and pasta beautifully!



Now that I'm married though, I have this new-found desire to cook good meals for the two of us. I fancy myself a decent cook, haven't burned the house down (yet!) and am exploring new recipes, cooking techniques and flavors. I have all the fun new cooking accessories from Crate & Barrel and Bed, Bath & Beyond that I never thought I'd use (hello meat tenderizer?), but now I am and plan to blog about the creations, both good and bad, as well as the questions that come up along the way.



So, I hope you'll pour yourself the cocktail of your choice, and sit back, relax and enjoy a good read. If you've got something to say, I'd love to hear it. Got a recipe you think I'd like? Send it my way. And, especially, feel free to share this site with anyone else you think might like it.



I don't promise to post something every day, and I don't promise each post will always change your life, but I do promise to share my adventures when they're worth sharing and would love to hear your feedback in return. See you all soon!



Cheers!

Maureen