Author: littleshoeprincess

cooking, thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Prep, A Car Accident & My First Adult Bevy Since October

littleshoeprincess

Well, today was a DAY!

It started at 6am when I was up crying in the kitchen chopping onions for various holiday dishes. Last night I made my checklist like a Boomer and was ready to go this morning. On today’s prep list: stuffing, soup, cranberry sauce, appetizer prep and cocktail juices.

Me, mentally preparing myself for the day before the sun comes up.
Allergic to apples, but I still put them in the stuffing!
Can I use every pan in the house? Challenge accepted.
The most important parts of the prep…cocktail prep!

After finished my Thanksgiving prep in what I thought was record time, I found myself with a day off from work and time to spare until I needed to be at the bus stop so I headed to TJ Maxx to make a return. And when I returned to my car, I found this:

A woman got out of her car when I approached mine. “Excuse me, miss?” she said. And she immediately gained points for not calling me ma’am. “I was leaving you a note. I hit your car.” And then the day went downhill.

So a cop came, we exchanged information, I got a police report that said I wasn’t in the car when this happened and then I was on my merry way back home.

Fast forward to 3pm, when it felt like an appropriate time to have my first adult beverage since October (since October, people!), so the 3 of us went to a brewery to have a beer. And man, did it taste GOOD. Mr. KK and I had beers, Little Mister looked like this:

Mr. Too Cool for School. This in a window into his teenage years, I’m sure.

Tomorrow, is my annual Thanksgiving post in pictures. Possibly with recipes. Definitely with cocktails.

Happy Thanksgiving Eve. If you’re out drinking with your high school friends, god love ya. If you’re home drinking after your kids to go to bed, I feel ya. Cheers!

cooking, food, recipe

Your Favorite Dip, Now a Dinner

littleshoeprincess

I could eat an entire meal made of up appetizers. I love everything appetizers have to offer: small dishes, cute sauces, finger foods and you can eat them without putting down your cocktail.

I have a few app favorites – but my one achilles heel is a warm and bubbly spinach and artichoke dip.

HEAVEN.

The proper (read: best) way to enjoy spinach and artichoke dip is on crispy sea salt pita chips or toasted naan. If you put that in front of me at a party, I would never leave the table, I don’t care who showed up at the door.

But I can’t just make a casserole dish of spinach and artichoke dip and eat it for dinner. (Grown ups don’t do that, do they?). So instead, I looked for another way to enjoy the flavors of the dip that I love that would be an acceptable – and healthier? – option. And guess what? I found one! This vegetarian dinner (I’m looking at YOU, Meatless Monday!) is made with spaghetti squash instead of using crackers or breads as the dip vessel.

NOTE: despite what you might think from 2 spaghetti squash posts in one month, I am not being paid by the National Spaghetti Squash Council to bring awareness to the squash. It just so happens that the old spaghetti squash is not only tasty, it’s versatile!

Cheesy Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

Basically, you can take your favorite spinach and artichoke dip, and at the end when everything is being mixed together, you add in the cooked spaghetti squash until blended. Then put the mixture back into the hollowed out squash shells and bake like you would a dip until everything is hot and melty.

Check out that delicious, toasty and melty spinach and artichoke stuffed squash!

First, cut the spaghetti squash in half the long way (BE CAREFUL!) and scoop out the seeds.

Then drizzle the squash insides with olive oil and salt and pepper. Place them face down on a baking sheet lined with foil and bake until soft. Let cool until you can handle them, and then scoop out all the string flesh into a bowl.

Meanwhile, make your favorite spinach and artichoke dip. I feel like everyone had a recipe for this dish that they love. I tend to mix and match. a few different recipes. This night, I cooked down the onions in oil and butter until they were soft, and then I mixed in the cream cheese and cheeses, then folded in fresh spinach and chopped artichoke hearts.

Next, add in the cooked spaghetti squash flesh. (Is there a better word for flesh? Because I’m starting to feel a little like Hannibal Lecter over here).

Once mixed, divide the mixture between the spaghetti squash shells and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, until everything looks melted and slightly browned.

Enjoy the right from the shells with a nice side salad or veggie.

I hope you try this as a weeknight meal. I actually made this recipe on a Sunday, stuffed the shells, and then baked them 2 days later. It really saved me time of cooking and prep on a busy school night.

Just writing this blog post had made me hungry!

Christmas, cooking, thanksgiving

It’s Thanksgiving Week, B*tches!

littleshoeprincess

Or, as I like to refer to it: 5 days until Christmas is unleashed!

This is the week when it starts to feel like the holiday season. I spent today in Christmas glory at an inspirational store near her house that was filled with all the decor and scents and greenery you could ever want. It was the kind of place that had decor for houses without children or dogs. So. Much. Glass.

Here are a few photos from how beautiful it was! I could have walked around all day!

I loved this sugar plum themed tree. There were about 10 different themed trees.
Everything was beautiful blown glass; basically stuff I can have in 10 years.
These were some gorgeous christmas tress. I love when places hang them from the tops so you can see what they will look like fully opened! When we go they are all wrapped up and we have to shake it loose and use our imaginations.

So the upcoming week looks like this:

Monday: This is a big week because…(drumroll)…tomorrow is WEIGH IN DAY for the end of the Fit 2 Feast challenge! FINALLY! Tomorrow morning at 6:45am I will find out if my hard work paid off and if I lost any pounds and any body fat. If the scale does not move, I may legit cry ugly tears at the kickboxing studio. If I find out I didn’t have any cocktails or french fries or ice cream or – and this is hard to believe – CHEESE – for three weeks for NOTHING, I will be mucho mad. Then off to a full day of work. Then helping sort pies for our PTA pie fundraiser.

Tuesday: It’s Colonial Day at school, so I’m helping out during my lunch hour. while they kids go from room to room to make different “old timey” crafts. All I know is Little Mister needs to bring in an orange (??) and I donated pipe cleaners and large popsicle sticks. Then Little Mister is double-booked for a hair cut and his first basketball practice. We really need that pre-holiday haircut, but I may have to move it to accommodate the first basketball practice.

Wednesday: Game On! I took the full day off to do all of my Thanksgiving cooking and prep. I’ll be making soup, stuffing, parts of appetizer recipes. I’ll be juicing grapefruits and lemons for cocktails. Then apron down and a manicure and dinner out for some non-challenge-worthy food (hopefully the night before Thanksgiving crowds aren’t too crazy!)

Thursday: Turkey Day! Wake up at the crack of dawn and set my 47 timers and prepare for the day! Every year on this day my blog post is a Thanksgiving in pictures…and this year will be no different!

Friday: Buh-bye gourds, hello garland! I hope to have all the fall stuff put away by 10am so I can start bringing up the Christmas bins. I plan to be decorating for at least 4-5 hours. I did concede and we will not be getting our tree this early. That will be the first weekend in December.

And you know who comes the weekend after Thanksgiving…

He’s coming baaaaack…..
Christmas, favorite things, shopping

kk’s favorite things

littleshoeprincess

Just because I can’t decorate for Christmas yet, and I get shamed for listening to holiday music, that doesn’t mean I can share my favorite gifts of 2022!

This is my curated list of things that I love, that someone else in your life may love as well. It’s the unofficial gift list of the holidays!

Porte + Hall Area Rug

Image: Porte & Hall

This summer we built a deck off of our kitchen, and the french doors that used to just open up to a 5 foot drop, now open to a gorgeous outdoor space. Next summer when we start using the deck more and more, I’ll want to have a large rug that spans the doorway to catch dirt. I LOVE the print of this rug (I’m a sucker for orange!). It seems to be sold out now in this color in the Area Rug size, but you can add yourself to the waitlist to be notified when it’s back in stock.

Sea Bags Rose Gold Striped Tote

Image: Sea Bags

The long-standing joke about Sea Bags in our house is that every time I pass a Sea Bags store, I go in, but never buy anything. I have been in Sea Bag stores in Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut over the last 5 years and am yet to purchase a bag for myself. And I LOVE the bags! I have my eye on this one in particular – the rose gold with the navy stripes feels both coastal and classy. The best part? You can customize the bag to have a zip top so nothing falls out.

Pyrex 20-Piece Glass Containers

Image: Crate & Barrel

Adulting is fun because you start putting practical items like food storage containers on your holiday lists! Yay! In an effort to stop using plastic tupperware containers we’re starting to go all glass. Because we’re crazy like that.

Melamine “Solo” Cups

Our summer house rental this year had these melamine cups and I instantly fell in love with them. Their colors were a little different (they had orange! and gray!) but they were so convenient for bringing beverages out to the pool. Plus, they were heavy enough that they didn’t blow over easily in the wind.

Rothy’s Utility Boots

You had me at Rothy’s. My favorite sneakers now come in a boot! I have been looking for the right blank ankle boots for YEARS. I could never find one that I liked; the heel was either too clunky or the boot was too shiny or looking like fake leather. These boots – albeit are ridiculously expensive – have the right heel height, are matte in color, and because they are Rothy’s we know they will be the most comfortable boot on the planet. Do they look like my hi-top black Rothy’s sneakers? Yes. HOWEVER, the sneakers have a white sole and will always look way to casual to wear out at night. Make room for these in your closet.

Duluth Reversible Poncho

It wouldn’t be a “favorite things” list without a poncho! This one is reversible and would be perfect with jeans and boots. And it’s from one of Mr. KK’s favorite stores, Duluth Trading. He’s so proud when I like something from this place. Bonus: it’s on sale!

LL Bean Vista Pants Fleece Lined

It’s not a favorite things list without something from LL Bean! I have these in the non-fleece version for spring/fall, but how awesome would it be to have a super warm pair for winter?! I love this dark gray color. And the best part about LL Bean pants is that they come in petite!

Microfiber Super Absorbent Hair Towel

I will try anything for better, less frizzy hair and this towel gets rave reviews. Plus, this feels like a great thing for after the pool, too. Starting with drier hair before trying to dry it – genius!

Peepers Duke Readers in Orange

Now that I’m – ahem – old, and I need readers, I love how fun and colorful they are. I have a few pairs that are my go-to, and Peepers has so many different styles. How do I not yet have an orange pair? How awesome are these!

****

Those are some of my favorite things this year. Happy shopping!

Little Mister, school

Help Wanted: Everywhere

littleshoeprincess

We are three years into life with COVID/pandemic/new normal and companies are still having a hard time hiring staff. Last year I wrote this post about the restaurant industry, and the hit they were taking financially because they couldn’t hire people to work, so they couldn’t fill table, therefore they couldn’t make money.

This is crazy to me.

I know this isn’t affecting every industry, but it feels like it’s affecting most of them. Yesterday afternoon we took Little Mister to his annual physical. We arrived on time, and had to wait until there was a free nurse to take his vitals, etc. There was someone ahead of us who WAS NOT HAPPY waiting. She was so rude and condescending to the nurse behind the window who was calmly explaining that they were short staffed. Ms. Rude wasn’t having it and continued to make snide remarks. When we were called into a room finally – ahead of Ms. Rude, thank you very much – the nurse said to us, loudly in the direction of the Rude Family in the waiting room, “Thank you so much for being nice and patient we are doing out best!”

One place where we are seeing the biggest impact of unfilled jobs is with the school buses. Every day we get an email that this bus or that bus isn’t going to be running, and that’s it’s going to be combined with another bus. They cannot hire bus drivers. I’m not making light of a bus driver’s job: it is hard, and thankless; driving kids around and being responsible for their safety…that is a big responsibility.

And when these buses don’t run, and other buses pick up the slack, it throws off the whole morning. The kids are on the bus longer while they take up an extra route, they are late to school, and the bus drivers are irritable. One day, one of the bus routes from our elementary school wasn’t going to run so they were combined with a bus from another elementary school. And then the kids from our school had to do their entire route, drop the kids at the other school and then drove across town to be dropped at our school. So…they likely got to school around lunchtime.

As a parent, you take a big leap of faith putting your child on the school bus. Last year, we drove Little Mister to school and picked him up (between the first year in the school and COVID, we weren’t ready to commit to the bus yet). But the time commitment for that was not sustainable for another year. So this year, Little Mister took the bus. I was certain that I would be riding the bus the first day with our very shy child, but he surprised us both by walking right onto the bus. He didn’t even wave goodbye.

After a few days on the bus, Little Mister informed us that the bus took too long, he spent too much time on it, and basically he gave it a rating of 0/5 stars. “I’d prefer it if you drove me and picked me up from school.”

Oh, really? Let’s not get into the things I’d prefer in this life.

Little Mister is a shy kid, who won’t go out of his way to talk to new people. So I imagine the bus ride was long and quiet for him. After a few weeks, he discovered that the time would go by faster if he was reading, so now he reads both ways on the bus. And there are no complaints from this parent. Choosing to read? Yes, please!

Our bus is on the tamer side, but I’ve heard some buses are loud and crazy. I can’t even imagine having to drive a bus with 30 screaming kids on it. So I understand why we are missing so many bus drivers…no one wants the job. But on the other hand…someone needs to take the job!

Case in point: today, the bus came 10 minutes early. Ten minutes is a lot of time in the morning, it could be the difference between shower or no shower, breakfast or no breakfast, pants or no pants. Thankfully the bus driver saw Mr. KK and Little Mister in the driveway – and then running down the driveway – and stopped to wait. Because she never stops to wait, even when she’s early. Today she was early because she was trying to squeeze in an additional bus route because one bus wasn’t running at all.

Then, the last 2 days have been half days and the bus was 25 minutes late dropping off Little Mister. The first day it happened, I was starting to get nervous. I was running through a bunch of scenarios in my head – none of them good, mind you – and cursing myself for not having Little Mister memorize my phone number. It didn’t help that the town was picking up the leaves on the curb that day, and were stopped right in front of my house. So I’m standing there, the guy with the blower is literally blowing leaves around me while the machine picked up the piles. Finally I couldn’t take it any longer and I called the school. I knew the secretary would know what was going on. Except a man’s voice answered. The principal! What was he doing answering the phone?

I should have introduced myself as “crazy mom” or “worry wart” because he assured me that the bus did leave a few minutes late (more like 20) and that he was on his way home.

Thankfully he arrived home safely – if not a little annoyed. (Same for me; I was annoyed. I spent 40 minutes of my work day standing at the end of the driveway! I don’t have that kind of time! I thankfully work from home. What about the parents who go to the office every day – these crazy bus schedules have got to be messing with their productivity!

We are powering through, because the bus affords us less time in the car, and less time away from work. Also, it allows us to avoid the pick up line. If you ever want to get back at someone who has wronged you, send them to the parent pick up line to get your kid for a week. It’s not for the faint of heart.

Bottom line: if you need a job, please apply to be a bus driver. If you retired early and are looking for a few hours of work a day, please apply to be a bus driver!

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to shop for the best holiday gift ever for our bus driver to show our appreciation.

Christmas, Decorating, Mr. KK, shopping, Target

I’m Torn Between 2 Seasons

littleshoeprincess

I think we can all agree that when November rolls around, summer is officially over. (I tend to hold onto summer for as long as possible, and will consider 65 degree October days basically an extensions of summertime). However, global warming is starting to mess with my logic, considering it was 75 degrees and sunny this past November 12th. The next day it was 20 degrees cooler, but that’s New England for ya.

November is a tricky time of year for me. We host Thanksgiving each year, so naturally I look forward to having everyone over, curating a menu and signature cocktail and eating, eating eating! Our house is decorated for fall, with leaves and pumpkins and oranges and browns. This is the first year I really got into fall decorating; and since orange is an accent color of our family room, the decor fits in seamlessly.

I love little houses! I have them out all year round, and decorate around them with the theme of the season.

But the problem with November, is that it’s not December.

While I like Thanksgiving, I LOVE Christmas. Like, LOVE LOVE. It is my most favorite time of the year (even better than birthday week), and each year I am itching to get started early. I am, however, shamed for these thoughts by Mr. KK and Little Mister. In fact, I took Little Mister to Target with me in October, and I happened to find some Christmas decor items in my cart (not sure how they got there?). When we got home, the little tattletale went right up to Mr. KK and yelled, “MOM BOUGHT CHRISTMAS STUFF!”

Thanks, a lot, dude. After I took you to Target for toys.

I also made the mistake of putting on Christmas music one morning while I was driving Little Mister around, and he ratted me out again! Where is this kid’s allegiance?

I’ve had our fall decor up two months now and I’m getting tired of it. I ran the idea of switching to Christmas BEFORE Thanksgiving, however Mr. KK was not too keen on the idea of eating turkey next to a tree.

So, the fall decor will stay up until the clock strikes midnight on Thanksgiving night and then it’s all Christmas, all the time.

When we were first married, Black Friday used to mean a fun day of shopping and lunch. Then we had Little Mister and after a two years of Black Friday fun when he could be in a stroller, we realized that crowded shopping and lunch we not as fun with a toddler. After that, Black Friday became Christmas decorating day!

So this year, the seasonal switcheroo will start early on the Friday after Thanksgiving, and go all day until it’s done. It takes hours to transform the house, and even longer with Little Mister wanting to “play” with my decorations. I’m not particular about much, but the Christmas decorating, that is MY project. Everything has a place, and I use photos from previous years to ensure the decor is where it should be.

And, of course, I have already been secretly purchasing new holiday decor items.

Here are some of my favorites:

Lit Village Stocking Holder from Threshold™

I loved this item at Target from last year, but it sold out quickly. I was so happy to see it back this year! I won’t be using it as a stocking holder; instead, it will fit nice on a shelf in my built in bookcase. And it lights up! How cute is that!

Flocked Bottlebrush Tree from Threshold

My decor color scheme tends to be in the cream, silver and gold family, so this tree will fit right in. It’s pretty tall, too, so will add some great height on the tops of our built ins. Also comes in green with colorful ornaments.

Bottle Brush Trees Gift Wrap White – Wondershop™

The key to a successful Christmas is having a strong wrapping paper game early on the season. I have already identified my wrapping color scheme for the season, and am up to my armpits in new wrapping paper, ribbons and gift tags.

T-minus one week until Operation: Christmas here at the house. Just have to get through turkeys and pumpkin pie, but my eye is on the prize. I’ll even be able to share photos before the end of November!

What’s your POV: Christmas decor before or after Thanksgiving?

Age, getting old

The Evolution of Scoring Concert Tickets

littleshoeprincess

The scene:
Boston apartment, 1999
9:58am, 2 minutes until Dave Matthews Band Tickets for Foxboro Stadium go on sale

Four women are armed with phones, ready for the clock strike to 10am.

“I’ve got Boston!” one yells.

“I’m calling New Hampshire!” says another.

“I have Rhode Island covered!”

“I’ll be Massachusetts back up!”

3…2…1….DIAL!

We all spring into action.

I’m on my cell phone – not a smart phone, mind you, just a plain old cell phone that could only make calls – dialing Ticketmaster in Massachusetts. Busy, busy, busy.

One of my roommates is on the land line, clicking ON, then redial, the OFF, then ON again. Repeat. New Hampshire is busy tone after busy tone.

Two more roommates – both on cell phones – calling Rhode Island and Massachusetts, both striking out.

And then…”It’s ringing!” We all hold our breath and gather around the phone.

Then, finally, a human: “Ticketmaster.” We all squeal with joy and look at the printed seating chart. Honestly, we’d take what we could get. “How many tickets?”

And so began the back and forth of sections and what was available.

And this, my millennium friends, is how we used to get concert tickets.

Fast forward to 2022
Taylor Swift concert tickets go on sale

I am probably the only female on the planet who was not trying to get Taylor Swift tickets yesterday – and then, again – today (slight exaggeration, but not by much). I have many coworkers who were waiting in virtual queues who told me, “If I hang up quickly it’s because I got in!” (Nobody hung up quickly).

“There are 6,000 people ahead of me in line!” and “I have been waiting on the computer for hours!”

And this, my friends, is unfathomable to me. I love a good concert as much as the next person, but the lengths people are going, and the insanity that is ensuing, is too much for me.

When Taylor Swift announced her tour, there was a fleeting moment when I thought, “I bet she’d be such a great concert to see.” And then I saw the rules on how to get tickets and I’m all like, “Yeah…nope.”

There is no one – not one musical artist, living or dead – that I would stay online for 10+ hours to get tickets to. Not to mention the COST of the tickets…that is just not something I could spend that much money on. I’d rather go on vacation!

Today’s news shared the absurd cost of tickets on resale sites such as Stubhub, here tickets are priced over $30,000.

Let me say that again: $30,000. For a concert ticket.

The worst part is, with how hard it is to get tickets and how expensive those tickets are, there are a lot of very sad girls out in the world.

The “old days” of getting concert tickets seems ridiculous now (can you imagine working at Ticketmaster and having to work the day super popular tickets went on sale? And you manually answered the phone? And had to talk to people about which tickets they wanted? that sounds like a HORRIBLE job!). But there was something about the thrill of the chase – all of us on different phones, manually dialing phone numbers in multiple states. There was no pre-sale or special clubs. Everyone was on equal footing, and it all came down to how fast your fingers worked with the dialing of a phone. And even when you got through and stopped hearing that annoying busy tone in your ear, you were put in a queue to wait for an operator.

Yes, you read that correctly. Wait. for. an. operator.

A real live person would tell you what tickets/sections/rows/seats were available.

And then our tickets would come to us in the mail!

We worked so hard as a team to get concert tickets that when we finally “got through” and spoke with someone, we were ecstatic!

Ah, the good old days!

Books, memoir

My Favorite Memoirs

littleshoeprincess

I am not shy about sharing on this blog that I want to write a memoir. I also want the motivation needed to sit down and write said memoir. If I didn’t write my novel when I was locked in a house during a pandemic with nothing to do, I’m not quite sure when I’m going to get around to doing it.

That being said, I am a pretty avid reader. And I’ve always heard that reading a lot helps you become a better writer. At least that’s the logic I’m applying to my eight year old, whose handwriting and spelling leaves much to be desired (can I vent for a hot second about how they don’t teach spelling anymore in school??? who needs to know how to spell, I guess?). And while my reading has slacked off a bit in the last few months because I can’t keep my eyes open for two seconds once I’m horizontal, I have read many, many books over the years. And in those books, were many, many memoirs.

Reading memoirs helped me to see the different ways people wrote about their lives. Some were funny, others were tragic, but they were all good. Some of the memoirs literally start at the beginning of the person’s life and move chronologically through milestones. Others jump around and are more like a collection of short essays. I think either works. Personally, I lean towards the memoirs that are like a bunch of mini stories.

When I write – and you read – my memoir, I hope you will laugh. Topics I will likely cover in my memoir include – but are not limited to:

  • How horrible my memory is
  • Stories from working at Disney World and living at the biggest party complex on the planet
  • Life before kids
  • Life after kids
  • Life as an only child
  • Waiting a week to get photos developed
  • Why I hated camp
  • Summers on the Jersey Shore (pre-GTL)
  • Losing a pet
  • Gaining a husband
  • My early business venture when I was 8: collecting and recycling cans for a nickel
  • My favorite recipes
  • My plan to break into Ina’s barn
  • And so much more

While I seems I should read a book about how to be disciplined enough to sit down and write a book, instead I read amazing memoirs to give me inspiration to share my own story.

Here are some of my favorite memoirs I’ve read:

Hooked by Sutton Foster
I was a Younger groupie, so reading this memoir was an easy choice. Is there anyone cuter than Sutton Foster?

Yes Please by Amy Poehler
One of the two funniest women there is. Parks and Recreation is pure genius.

Bossypants by Tina Fey
The second of two funniest women. Her book isn’t new, but worth a read or listen.

Becoming by Michelle Obama 
I know she has a new book, but I haven’t read that one yet. Michelle is a class act all the way. And anyone who can roast the President (at the time) gets points in my book.

A Very Punchable Face by Colin Jost
I highly recommend listening to this book, read by the author. It’s like one long SNL update about his life.

Why Not Me? and Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
These aren’t new, but they are hilarious. I’m so impressed with Mindy Kaling, and we are just about done binging The Mindy Project (her TV show) which was straight up LOL.

I Hate Everyone, Except You by Clinton Kelly
He had me at What Not To Wear, and I’ve loved him since. Now he cooks! He hosts! He drinks on Insta! 

Disrupted: My Misadventure in the Start-Up Bubble by Dan Lyons
Having a background in advertising and marketing, this book hit home to me. If you think companies like, oh, let’s say Hubspot are filled with young whipper snappers and happy hours, then you would be correct. What could go wrong?

Unabrow: Misadventures of a Late Bloomer by Una LaMarche
Funny and cringey (which makes a great book!), you’ll feel better about your own awkward teen years.

Whiskey in a Teacup by Reese Witherspoon 
I grew up watching Reese Witherspoon in movies, and I love me some Elle Woods. Her memoir – which I listened to since she narrated – was upbeat and sweet, just like she is. She’s a person you just want to hang out with.

If You Love Me: A Mother’s Journey Through Her Daughter’s Opioid Addiction by Maureen Cavanaugh
I listened to this on a drive to Boston and I wish I could have kept driving to Canada in order to keep listening. It is heart wrenching and chilling, and real and scary. You won’t be able to put it down.

What am I missing? What memoirs should I grab next? (Please don’t say “Educated”, I tried to read that book 3 times and could not get into it!)

Life, Little Mister

Lies, Lies, Tell Me Sweet Little Lies

littleshoeprincess

The Little Mister has entered into the life stage of lying.

Nothing major, more like little white lies.

Questions Little Mister will lie about when answering on any given day:

“Did you wash your hands?”
“Did you brush your teeth?”
“Did you put your clothes in the hamper?”
“Did you eat all your fruit?”
“Did you hand in your homework?”
“Did you clean up your toys?”
“Are you lying to me right now?”

And the best part is, he’s a HORRIBLE liar; which, I suppose, is good qualify for a kid to have. Though I imagine he will perfect this skill as he gets older. He’s not quite sophisticated enough to know that if he lies about brushing his teeth and I check his toothbrush and it’s dry, that’s he’s caught, and that he should have wet the toothbrush before we had this conversation.

I like to have fun with him when he’s “stretching the truth”, asking him to look me directly in the eye and tell me again. To which he will make his eyes as wide as they will go and he will stare at me with his creepy bugged-out eyes and repeat himself.

The little bugger is impervious to guilt, too!

Our conversations go something like this:

ME: “Did you wash your hands?”

LM: “Yep!” (Nope)

ME: “Why didn’t I hear the faucet go on?”

LM: “Because I turned it on really low and it was quiet.” (Again, nope)

ME: “Can I smell your hands?”

LM: “You don’t need to. They’re clean, I swear.” (Nope!)

ME: “You’re sure?”

LM: “Why don’t you believe me?”

ME: “I do believe you. Do you know why? Because I know you wouldn’t never lie to me.”

LM: “That’s right. I wouldn’t lie to you.” (Still lying)

((quiet))

LM: “Well, I guess I could wash them again.”

I know lying is part of growing up and seeing what you can get away with. Little Mister tests us every day – how much can he get away with before one of us cracks!

But I guess I can’t really say anything, since there are small, white lies we tell the Little Mister when necessary. Things like:

“That store is closed today.”
“They are sold out of that toy.”
“We don’t have any ice cream.”
“Moms see and hear and know everything.”

(That last one if my favorite)

cooking, food, recipe

Shrimp and Tomato “Pasta” Recipe

littleshoeprincess

Happy Sunday! If you’re Italian, you may have a traditional Sunday dinner in your family where everyone gathers together to eat delicious pasta! There is nothing better than a hot bowl of pasta on chilly fall day. Since I’m still doing my kickboxing challenge, we’ll be having “fasta” (fake pasta) tonight. And the family will not be coming over because no one wants to eat an impasta (see what I did there?).

Actually, this dish is delicious – I made it last week and it was so good it’s having a repeat performance. It’s shrimp and tomatoes and garlic over spaghetti squash. If you’re not familiar with spaghetti squash, when you cook it you can can shred the flesh with a fork and it turns into these long strands that resemble – you guessed it – spaghetti.

I made this dish up, so there’s no formal recipe, but I’ll do my best to add some measurements and directions. Even Mr. KK liked it!

Shrimp and Tomato Spaghetti “Fasta”

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 small spaghetti squash
About 14-16 uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (I like the 16-20 per pound or when I’m feeling fancy the 13-15 per pound)
1 pint of grape tomatoes, halved (red, yellow, whatever you like)
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
Chicken stock
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise (be careful!) and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle some olive oil inside both halves of the spaghetti squash and season with salt and pepper. Place the squash flesh side down on the baking sheet and cook for about 45 minutes to an hour, until a knife slides easily into the skin and the squash is fully cooked. Let cool.

While squash is cooling, place shrimp on a foil-lined baking sheet and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer and set aside.

Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat and add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the tomatoes and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Toss the tomatoes around the pan until they are coated in the oil. Sauté until the tomatoes skin starts to wrinkle up a bit, abound 6-8 mins. Add about 3/4 cup of chicken broth and reduce heat to low. Allow the tomatoes and garlic to simmer in the chicken broth until the tomatoes soften and the stock starts to reduce just a bit (you don’t want it to reduce too much, this will be your “sauce” for the dish).

Pop the pan with the shrimp in the 375-degree oven and cook for about 7-8 minutes, or until the shrimp is pink and cooked through.

When spaghetti squash is cool enough to handle, use a fork to scrape the flesh into long strands. Fill two bowls with spaghetti squash, then divide the tomato mixture into the two bowls and place the shrimp on top.

It’s surprisingly simple to make, and honestly really, great. The more garlic the better!