Our New Year's Eve

did i mention how much i love these 2?
this will be the first time i have spent new years without them. we have a tradition, pedicures, martinelli's, Christmas pajamas, ball drop and pot banging. last year bee fell asleep. i miss them so much when they go to their dad's. this year i will keep the tradition, i will paint my toenails, but no toe nail painting for popi.
i never go out on new years, i prefer to stay in my warm house with my loud loving children! i hope you have a warm new year's eve surrounded by those you love. i know next year will be great, i get to see my good luck charms next year!

2010 Year in Review

last year i rung in the new year with my favorite girls, some pedicures and martinelli's sparkling apple juice. this has been a life changing, whirlwind of a year! here are my highlights...

january...we told everyone we were going to have a baby
february...the Greek and i got married
march...got garden ready to plant
april...found out we were having a baby girl
may...family trip to bay area for carrie's wedding and vacation
june...bee turned 4 years old
july...we put on a music festival, free tulsa
august...i gave birth to kalliope
september...juni turned 7 years old
october...my hunni turned 48 and the girls and i got a blue ribbon for our halloween costumes
november...a yummy thanksgiving and i started to exercise
december...a beautiful Christmas with friends and family

happy new year everyone!

Housefull of Busy

so many visitors today! i am exhausted. the girls came over to visit all day and to play with friends. carrie and tal came to visit while the girls were in the middle of a littlest pet shop extravaganza with callie, our neighbor. when they left then our friends from manhattan came over for a visit. they have a four year old so she and bee were besties all day. everyone had a blast. it was 70 degrees today so kids were in and out all day, kids everywhere! it was great to see them:) now charlie brown on the telly with a nice glass of wine, ahhhhhhhh.

My Hunni

sometimes i have to pinch myself, i am so lucky to have my Greek in my life. after my divorce, i did not believe in marriage or that there was someone out there for me. i was very cynical, to say the least. even after i met my Greek, i pushed my feelings away, i wanted to focus on my children and family only. but i am so glad i finally opened my heart to him. he has added so much to my life, he is the peanut butter middle to my chocolate exterior shell.
my top 10 reasons i love him so much...

10..he knows who karl lagerfeld is, and not just that, he dressed up like him for halloween once
9..he likes the same music as i, and he takes me to go see live music
8..he is willing to go do new things like go to a rodeo because i want to
7..he can fix almost anything, and that is sexy
6..i love listening to his stories
5..he is friends with my parents, he talks to my dad without me knowing it and makes sure my mom knows about modern architecture goings on in tulsa
4..he is brilliant, his mind is an awesome thing, i don't know how he does it
3..he loves me for some odd reason, he knows everything about me and still adores me
2..he changed my mind about a third child, popi is such a blessing
1..he loves, protects, and takes care of my children as his own

Angels We Have Heard on High

my friend valerie posted this today. it is such a beautiful and amazing retelling of the birth of Jesus Christ.

To Do...

so much to do. girls are gone for a week, so it is just popi and i. sad really, but a much needed break to get some stuff clean. for some reason when i clean, they are right behind me to use the space i just cleaned:) yesterday i cleaned out flash's cage, picked up Christmas trash, and swept the living room.
i need to...
1. fold clothes
2. clean chicken coops
3. feed chickens
4. get some ham for split pea soup
5. clean out car
6. put up computer the girls got for Christmas, and figure out where
7. sew Christmas gifts for girlfriends
8. find place for kids new toys
9. go through clothes for winter clothing swap
10. wrap presents for carebear, who will be here tonight!

to make myself feel better, i already have been to the Y to work out, had my free mceedee's coffee, and ate breakfast. i also got the young folks at the front desk at the Y to flatter me, they thought i was younger than 25:) how sweet. so much to do, so little time, isn't that what the white rabbit says? i need to go to anthropologie as well, but dear readers, please don't make me go to utica square right now. it is a mad house! new years is coming, got to hurry up! later gators!

Whew...

chicken is alive! thought you'd like to know.
we've been a busy family. Christmas eve eve i started dinner for Christmas eve dinner.
Christmas eve i cooked some more.

beef bourguignon and mashed potatoes...

(and i got a pink gorillapod!)

our gingerbread houses as centerpieces.

also, bobby flay's brussel sprouts with pomegranate he made at the pioneer woman's ranch, heavenly

and i made my famous chocolate brioche english toffee bread pudding

friends and family for Christmas!

naps:)

and presents.

and of course, harry and david pears....divine.

indian food and telly tonight. rest.

Merry Christmas! HAppy Birthday Jesus!!

up at 6.45am.
santa(granny) came last night.
everyone got what they asked for, minus the skunk:)

we opened presents, and listened to music.

we had peppermint hot chocolate, waffles, sausage and cheese grits.

and popi had her first Christmas!
Merry Christmas!

busy cooking, busy elfing, busy being a nurse

please pardon my no posting for a couple days. I am cooking foods for today and tomorrow, wrapping presents for everyone, and to top it all off one of our baby chickens looks very ill. I don't think she'll make it through the night:( I will let you know what happens. have a merry Christmas with your families!

[Posted with iBlogger from my iPhone]

Meet Me

some of you know me, some of you don't. my name is sacha. i am from oklahoma. i love oklahoma. let's see....

i have three children. juni 7, bee 4, popi 4 months.
i have been married twice.
i am a leo.
i am 32.

my favorite colors are pink, yellow and brown.
my favorite drink is coffee, black.
my favorite food is gummi bears.
my favorite beer is shiner bock.

i have a degree in culinary arts from OSU.
i am working at a very slow pace on a degree in nutrition, very slowly.
i have not worked in a kitchen since 2002.
i have ran the family scooter shop since 2003.
i am a stay at home mom and wife since 2010.
i own a bajaj chetak.

i like to sew.
i like to knit.
i like to garden.
i own chickens.
i have a small dog.
i don't like small dogs.
i like big dogs.
i want a bouvier des flandres.

i have 2 best friends, one local, the other in the bay area.
i miss my bay area bestie lots.
we have been BFFs since elementary.
my favorite movie is harold and maude.
my favorite director is peter greenaway.
my favorite band is the pixies.
my favorite author is jean auel.

my friend carla has business called raspberry grunt. they let me wear their clothes, and the bedazzle my hair and makeup and make me feel pretty. that's where the pictures are from.

so, that is a little about me. just in case you were wondering.

Christmas Gift Guide, BD Safe-Clip Device

diabetes affects more than 20 million americans. chances are you know someone with diabetes. my dad is diabetic, so i have always been pretty conscience of what he does to take care of himself. it is also a fun challenge to make yummy desserts for him using the awesome sugar substitutes he is allowed. because of this i am pretty good in the kitchen with sugar substitutes...and here i will brag for a second, celebrated chef and diabetic, paul prudhomme came to a restaurant where i was pastry chef, i made him a lovely strawberry shortcake for dessert, sugar free. yeah me:)

well, what i am here to tell you about is the BD safe-clip device. as you know diabetics use needles to dose themselves with insulin many times a day. that leaves tons of needles to be disposed of, and by law they are a biohazard, and biohazards have to be disposed of carefully. many people have those huge, ugly biohazard boxes in their homes where they toss the whole needle. my dad uses the bd safe-clip. it is so neat, it clips off the syringe making it useless and safely stores it away in it's container.

you stick the needle in the side and it clips it! it will hold up to 1,500 needles, or a 2 year supply for a diabetic. it is a wonderful price too. if you have a diabetic in your life they would thank you for this thoughtful gift. i think it is amazing and i don't even need one. over and out people...chocolate brioche and english toffee in the making, more on that later.

Christmas Stocking How-To, by me

for our family i have made our own stockings out of two coordinating cotton fabrics, white pom poms, and a ribbon. this year i had to make a new stocking:) here is popi's...

first i cut out the shape i want out of the fabrics. i fold the fabric in half so i cut 2 pieces at once. i do this with both fabrics, so i have 2 stockings. i pin them both inside out to sew them one at a time, leaving the top open. yes, that is littlest pet shop under my ironing board. don't tell bee:)

my second piece. the floral is going to be the lining inside. you could actually reverse this stocking if you wanted to.

after sewing them and turning the outside stocking right side out, put the lining inside the stocking wrong side out, so when you open it, you see the pattern. did that make sense?

see?

i then folded the top edges in and ironed the hem down so i could sew it.

i did both edges and inserted my pom poms and ribbon hanger in between hems and pinned it down.

then i used my zig-zag stich to sew it all together.

done! if you look closely you can see the folded down edge and see the inside. sorry you can't see the ribbon loop for hanging, but you get the picture, right?
Merry CHristmas!!

Christmas Pajama Party at the HIistorical Society

Food Today

i was super hungry today:) i made biscuits. i love biscuits. i make the best biscuits.
2 c. flour
1 tbs baking powder
1/3 c crisco...i use lard-because it is super yummy.
3/4 c milk

cut your fat into the flour and baking powder till it is a coarse meal, you can use a fork or a pastry cutter. add the milk, but this is the key, barely mix it. make a ball without overworking it and put that ball on a lightly floured work surface. pat it down and fold the dough over on itself 4 times. cut with a cup or biscuit cutter, bake at 425 for 8-15 minutes, watch them!

then i wanted chicken and dumplings. i have a sore throat and some congestion, so some homemade medicine was in order.

we went to whole foods and bought a whole chicken. we buy only hormone free meat. i do this because of the girls. i do not want the girls running around with extra hormones, isn't that suicide?

i cut the chicken into pieces and put it into a pot of water, 2 qts. i added a chopped onion, 3 celery ribs chopped, and 3 carrots chopped, and 2 bay leaves. i let it all boil for about an hour or until the meat fell off the bone, all the while skimming the yuck off the top. i took all the meat out of the stock after that and took off all the fat and bones out. i ripped the meat up and threw it back into the pot. i then made dumplings!

2 c. flour and 3/4 c. ice water. mix together, roll in a ball, roll out onto a floured work surface and cut into noodles! toss with flour and let dry for a couple minutes before tossing them into the pot of stock. when you put them into the stock put them in a little at a time so they don't clump. add salt and pepper and yummy!

and i didn't stop there. i made roasted beet salad with green beans and goat cheese, with a lemon thyme vinaigrette.
i miss cooking at a restaurant. cooking at home is fun, but i usually make too much and end up inviting lots of people over to eat! maybe i'll call you next time...

Christmas Gift Guide, Sigg Water Bottle

this is my sigg that i have. i love my water bottle. it is plain jane and big. sigg is a swiss company that has been making water bottles for over 100 years. they are bpa free, and never have a weird aftertaste. they come in many different sizes and colors. there are so many to choose from, i just chose the plainest of them all. easy. but i am sure you can find one that fits your personality or a loved ones. give the gift of yummy water!

Monday Morning Anthropologie

surprise! after breakfast with the brood, all 4 of us went to anthro for some looksies.

jacquard missive skirt
we saw this beautiful skirt. i love oranges right now. the pretty folds on this skirt are so flattering. i want.

paisley gust sweater jacket
gosh, i didn't notice i fell in love with orange things today. the texture of this is yummy, and the design is so modern yet classic, all in one...

peacock crest jewelry box
they have a pretty fox stole box too, but it didn't photograph as well. such a pretty place to put your pretty things.

imprinted palette egg caddy
i love deviled eggs! i love this plate. wouldn't dyed Easter eggs look wonderful on this plate?

de vincennes dinner plate, octopus
i would eat octopus salad on this plate till the cows came home. well, i'd eat cow on it too.

anthropologie has some wonderful sale items out right now. Christmas ornaments are on sale too, think about next year's tree....
have a good week everyone, and a merry Christmas to boot!

18 Weeks at Queenie's

pop-tart is 18 weeks today.
she rolls over from her tummy to her back. she talks, and raspberries, and blows bubbles. she grabs her hands, chews on her hands, sucks her thumbs. she picks toys up and brings them to her mouth. she giggles, boy does she giggle:) she takes two naps a day. she drinks lots of milk from her mama. she is working on sitting up. she loves to watch tv, i don't endorse this, but if i am not careful, her head is craned half way around her body and she has found a television. she doesn't like her car seat anymore. she likes to be in the center of attention, not herself the center, but in the midst of everything.

xoxoxoxoxoxo

my june-bug and beila-bot. yes, that is a blue mustache and goatee, with pink freckles.

family.