Also Worthy Of Coming Out of Hiding....

Maybe I'll get back to blogging, maybe I won't...but for now, you can stare at a blurry picture of my cute doggy! (And, according to the picture, my awkward looking fiancee.) You're welcome.


Hi, I'm Lily!

Worthy of Coming Out Of Hiding....

Why do I not find out places like THIS exist until AFTER I have moved HALFWAY ACROSS THE COUNTRY?!?!?

Whoa...how'd February get here??

Hey everyone! Blog slacker here!

I love reading blogs and hearing about what is going on other people's lives...both people I know in person and those I know through the Blog World. Maybe I don't think my life is interesting enough for other people to want to read about it, I don't know, but I suck at updating my blog! It was going to be a New Years resolution to keep up with my blog...obviously, on February 15th, you can see that's holding up real well.

The Doc is on call today and I don't really have any plans, other than to play with the pupster for a little bit...yes, that's how far behind I am in blogging...we have a new roommate! Updates to come!

Happy Monday!

We're 1/5th of the way through the week! WooHoo! Today went by SO FAST! I looked at the clock and it was 5:00 already! I hope the rest of the week zooms by in the same fashion!

We had a pretty nice weekend...Justin was on call on Friday night and I was beginning to resemble Medusa -- on a good day -- so I got a haircut! I had been nervous about trying a new salon here in San Antonio but knew I had to get the hurr did (after all, the last time I got it cut was two days before This Pretty Lady's wedding...in APRIL! YIKES!)

Speaking of April, that was the name of my stylist at Smooth Lines Salon. I was pleased to read her fab-o reviews on City Search before I went. She was just as cute as she was a great stylist -- I thought it was a little short at first but I love it! I think I've found my stylist for the next two and a half years!

On Saturday I woke up bright and early -- and COLD! It was 35 degrees out! -- to get to the City Manager's 5K Run/Walk. My work has a strong partnership with the City of San Antonio so a bunch of us volunteered to participate to show our support. I was responsible for coordinating the event and everyone said they wanted to walk. I was hoping to run bc I'm training for a 10K in April, but was looking forward to spending some time with co-workers so I went with the flow. So, I roll up in my jeans and hoody sporting my still cute-ly stlyed 'do from April's handywork the night before and see some work buddies wearing running pants and tennis shoes, stretching and warming up!

Had I gotten the memo, I would have done a wardrobe change before the leaving the casa -- and wouldn't have eaten that second third biscuit. I decided to give it a whirl and ended up running the first mile with a co-worker then let her go ahead and finish...the jeans, hair down and keys, camera and cell phone jingling along in my sweatshirt pouch didn't make for the best running conditions. I walked back to meet up with my co-workers who were walking and finished with them.

After the race, I headed to my favorite vegetable market and stocked up for the first time since Thanksgiving! I came home, unloaded my loot, cleaned the house and waited for a sleepy Justin to get home from a loooong night in the NICU. When he got home, he passed out and I watched football until it was time to get ready for my company Christmas party!

The Christmas party was nice -- downtown at the BEAUTIFUL brand new Grand Hyatt. Food was delicious and I may or may not have paid two trips to the pasta bar. We left around 9:00 after using our two "Free Drink" tickets and headed out downtown with my friend Amanda. We met up with a couple other friends and had a great night!

Sunday was spent laying around for the first half of the morning and cleaning and cooking for the second half! There's something so nice about starting the week with the house clean and all the laundry done -- there would be something even nicer about it all if I had someone to do it for me. We had a YUMMY pork dinner (Good Luck with the recipe tonight, Jess!) and then watched all we could bare of the first half of a disappointing Redskins game. Boo.

I'm hoping the week will go by fast! Justin is off this weekend and we've made plans to go up to Fredericksburg to do some Christmas shopping, wine tasting, sightseeing -- and a little more wine tasting! Have a great week!

Not Just For Pancakes Anymore!

I found this delicious recipe for Maple Sage Roasted Pork Tenderloin in the November 2008 Cooking Light. I immediately dog-eared the page because I knew I wanted to try it out! I diced up some butternut squash I got on MAYJAH sale at my Farmer's Marketing (Holler at 5lbs for $1!!) and baked them with the pork, roasted some asparagus with garlic and popped an Uncle Ben's in the microwave for 90 seconds and had a DELICIOUS and super healthy meal!

Maple Sage Roasted Pork Tenderloin
Recipe adapted from Cooking Light
Ingredients:
- 1 tblsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp chopped fresh sage (I only had dried...still yum!)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 (1-lb) pork tenderloin, trimmed of fat
- Cooking spray

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag; seal and turn to coat. Marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes.

Bake at 400° for 25 minutes or until a thermometer registers 155°. Cover loosely with foil. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

The recipe calls for the pork to be baked on a flat baking sheet covered with foil. Since I cooked the butternut squash along with the pork, I baked mine in a casserole dish. Also, after consulting with my mom, I decided to bake mine at 375° for about 35 minutes. This was definitely the most tender my pork had EVER come out...YUM! SO DELICIOUS!

A close up of the pork...

Christmas Is All Around Us

If you know that song, then you've seen one of the best Christmas movies. Ever.

We've been spreading the holiday cheer at Casa de Margarita and getting in the Christmas spirit! The weekend after Thanksgiving we trotted off to Wal-Mart and got our tree! We spent the next day putting it together...

And then I spent the next three hours tangled up in a seemingly never-ending strand of lights. What resulted from that monstrosity was this pretty little a lot bigger than it looked in the store tree. Trees look sadder without presents beneath them. Since Justin and I have yet to go Christmas shopping, rather than actually go out and complete said shopping, I told him I was going to wrap up things we already own and put them under the tree -- he thought I was nuts.

Feelin' Hot, Hot, Hot

I haven't always been a big fan of spicy foods. As part of my "training to move to Texas" I began forcing myself to get used to foods that carry a bit o' zing with 'em. I began throwing (verrrrry finely diced!) spicy peppers into my fajitas and enchiladas and adding a couple dashes of red pepper flakes to my pasta dishes. My tastebuds have been learning well and I'm able to tolerate the spiciness in small to medium doses. This dish is considered a wee tad on the "wayyy too spicy for me" side.

On Thanksgiving Day, I wanted to have a snack ready for Justin when he got home after being on call so he wouldn't be rummaging through the fridge and in my way. I had seen a recipe for an easy take on Jalapeno Poppers and I gave it a whirl! They were super easy and he loved them!

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Stuffers
6 Jalapenos, cut in half lengthwise, ribs and seeds removed
6 oz. cream cheese, softened
Approx 2-3 Tblsp Mexican Seasoning (such as Old El Paso)
6 Slices Turkey or Regular Bacon, cut in half

In a small bowl, mix together cream cheese and mexican seasoning. Fill each jalapeno half with a small amount cream cheese mixture. Wrap stuffed jalapeno with half slice turkey/regular bacon. Bake @ 350° until jalapeno gets soft and bacon is crisp and browned (about 20 minutes).