Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving Dinner

Well, this year I decided that I would be helpful and cook dinner with my mom. We are also going over to our neighbors for dessert, so last night I made chocolate chocolate-chip cookies and peanut butter cookies with reeces in the middle (if I dare say, they are delicious! Credit for the latter idea goes to my neighbor). Today I got up and made a scrambled omelet with onions, marinaded tofu, tomatoes and feta cheeze...usually I include broccoli or cauliflower in the mix, but we had none. This was my first time working with tofu and feta, so it was an experiment, but I made a "double batch" for my mom too. It turned out decently! Yea, I now have a delicious, healthy breakfast recipe!
After that, we sat and fooled around for a while until 10am. That's when the cooking began. We both were cooking from 10:00am until 3:15pm, when we ate our Thanksgiving "linner" (lunch-dinner). I am pleased to say that I was able to cook the stuffing, a green bean casserole type of dish, corn souffle, and my mom and I split the mashed potatoes. She cut up fruit for a fruit salad and did everything with the turkey...I held it while she stuffed it, but that is all I could bring myself to do without being utterly disgusted. She also did the gravy. Sadly, I cannot say, from experience, how the latter two tasted, as I am a vegetarian, but I'm sure they were delectable.
All in all, it was a great learning experience and a fun way to spend the day with my mom. I hope to do this for our Christmas dinner as well! And with any other big meals we have like this from now on. I learn a lot about cooking, I make her life somewhat easier, and I get to have fun and spend time with my mom- I see no negatives to this.

So, for my first attempt at helping with Thanksgiving dinner, I am rather pleased! ...And it was over within half an hour, but it was still worth it! One day my brother will come around to enjoy and appreciate more than the turkey, fruit, and mashed potatoes. I'm not sure when, exactly, but I'm sure it will happen sometime. Maybe he'll even learn to cook too!...
But let's not get too excited here.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Hufflepuff Scarf


So I've been working on knitting a Hufflepuff Scarf.

To explain- my three roommates and I took the Harry Potter house-sorting test and we all got Hufflepuff, so we decided to go as Hufflepuff students for Halloween. I did manage to finish the scarf a week before Halloween, but it was 85˚ that night, so I did not end up wearing it.
However, here is the completed scarf- it goes down to my knees when wrapped around my neck, otherwise it is...well, long, and very warm and cozy. I don't think the pattern, if there is one, required it to be so long, but I've always wanted a long scarf, and two years ago I made someone a Gryffindor scarf about the same length proportionally on him, though he is a foot taller than I. Ever since then I have wanted a long, cozy scarf, and I thought this was the perfect opportunity.
We also made wands and robes, and we bought ties, and I will post a picture of my full costume later- once I get a picture of it taken. I can't wait until I have a need to wear this to keep warm, as it is still very warm outside right now.

In two weeks I shall be home and welcomed by cold weather!

Website!

http://lizbell.webs.com/

I am still working, with quite a bit left to do, on a website. I have none of my art uploaded yet, a rather important part of my website, however- the rest of the site is live. I had been working on my own website in Dreamweaver, but it was taking an excruciatingly long time, so at the very least this is a temporary website. It might very easily become my perminant website. Though I put sweat, blood and tears into my own website, I can realize when it is time to give something up, and this might just be one of those times.

I should have my art uploaded by the end of the week, as this week is filled with an extraordinary amount of work- normally I would simply upload it all today!

I am not sure where this will take me, but I figure at least having some sort of website is better than nothing. If anyone has suggestions, please feel free to email me- I would love to hear them!