"A" is for almost finished...

Painting that is. Okay, I'm taking the "A" is for too far. I should have moved on to "B" and "C" but I didn't, so I'll finish the week with one last "A".

We painted more today. Bill and I worked hard and we worked from 8:30a-8p. We stopped and ate some Subway for lunch, but other than that we didn't stop to rest.

Here are some things I do when I paint:
I stand on the counters and sit on the floors to paint
It's fun. And call me lazy, but it's how I work.

My hand started going numb like Bill's does. Repetitive stress syndrome, yay. I have my wrist wrapped up and am looking forward to a day of rest tomorrow.

I don't like blue tape. It hoovers beyond anything. I can cut in like a pro and it irks me when I pull of the tape only to see paint seeped through behind it, no matter how much I press the tape into whatever it is I'm taping off. It becomes more of a hassle to tape than to just cut in. Although my wrist is feeling the cutting in...

We're hoping to be finished by Friday. We won't be able to go in at all on Tuesday, so we'll see how we do. I'll keep you posted! (Because I'm sure you're all on the edges of your seats waiting to see if and when we will get this done, there's nothing more exciting. Don't worry, TV returns in just a couple more weeks. Then you'll have to force yourself to check my blog.)

"A" is for A+ pies

The apple pies turned out perfect. My best pie crusts ever. The humidity, amount of cutting in the shortening, the stars, everything must have been aligned right. They are flaky and flavorful. It's the same pie crust I've always made. I do think I cut the shortening in more than I have in the past. That must be the key. At any rate, next time you come visit, request a pie. I make a pretty darn good one.

"A" is for Apple Pie

It doesn't get more American than that. Unless of course you happen to know that today is official start of Pro Football. And I do.

So I made a couple of apple pies. And I'm watching Green Bay play New Orleans. And I'm okay with that.

I finally used the pie "form" roller thingy (I'm sure that's its official name since I'm all about being official today) from Shannon. I know if she's reading this, she just gasped. I know. I'm sorry. You gave it to me for my birthday. I wanted to wait until something was in season (uh, let's see, I could have made pecan pie...). But summer has come and almost gone and I hadn't used them yet. I thought about making a blueberry pie, but for some reason, never bought enough blueberries (I think it takes something like a gallon of blueberries to make pie). Plus I have my chocolate blueberry cake and the blueberry crumb cake which are divine. Apple pie is my favorite (fruit in a pie, pecan takes the cake, er pie, as my favorite).

Unfortunately the pies aren't for us. Our church hosts a week of Family Promise (formerly known as Interfaith Hospitality), which is housing for those who are in between housing. Bill and I helped with this program in our church in Toms River. Yes, that was five + years ago. I've been making dinners for the program here only for the last year or two. Tomorrow night I'm providing dinner.

The menu:
Sloppy Joes ("sloppy joes, slop, sloppy joes" -that was for you Bill) which I'm famous for in the Jr. High youth group circle
Salad
Macaroni and Cheese
And for dessert: Apple pie a la mode

Yup. I went all out. I'm staying to eat with them, and honestly I'm super excited. I think it's a nice, simple meal. It's not too fancy but it's still comfort food. It's not too heavy for a summer time meal (no really, I'm not in denial, it's still summer, read my blog from Labor Day).

What's your ideal comfort food meal?

"A" is for apples and they're back

Late summer means some of the best fruits and vegetables are fresh (editor's note: you may disagree with me and that is okay, these are my favorites and since this is my blog, I can say things like this). Corn is one of them. Apples are another.

One of my all-time favorite lunches consists of fresh apples with peanut butter. Mom and I went to Robinette's so she could get peaches. They had an early harvest apple, whose name I have forgotten... (Mom, what kind are they?) We bought a bag and split it. They're very good. And I'm super happy to be eating apples with my lunch again.

I've also decided that today is the day I meet my quota for my fruit servings. Like a years worth, in one day, today. I had oj for breakfast, watermelon and blueberries for a snack, banana bread and the aforementioned apple. I'm feeling like I should go squeeze some lemon into my water just to balance it out.

I should point out that for dinner last night, I made a harvest soup. It had an onion, a leek, a butternut squash, carrots, a potato and an apple in it (and it's so good). It's perfect for this lovely late summer weather.

Who knows what dinner holds, hopefully a salad with some tomato and olives...

Spam-A-Lot, shuffle and painters

Today, I took my iPod with me while I painted. I have now listened to all 299 songs on my iPod. Okay, so 299 isn't a lot but it has taken me three years to get through all of them on shuffle. Not just listening to the different playlists or going through every song. Nope, there are those of us who have some weird ambition to listen to all of them on shuffle.

Now, back to the 299 part. Three years ago we gave our Mac to my parents who then were able to join the 21st century and get email (and internet access). That was wonderful. But before I could update my iPod and put more music on it, Bill announced that he had cleared it off. It was ready to go to my parents. Bummer. So I have been stuck with 299 songs. We were unable to replace our Mac. That was sad.

But the songs are interesting for sure. From Christmas songs to Spam-A-Lot it has been fun listening to them on shuffle.

While I was painting, a man wandered around the corner and stood in the doorway. For some reason he looked like a painter. My guess was correct because then he said, "Hm, painting. I'm a painter." I have no idea how I knew that, but it was a good guess. He didn't linger for long, but he sure made me nervous. I mean, he's a professional painter. I've painted a lot, but I don't do it for a living. This is just for extra cash. I was actually surprised it took this long for an actual painter to come into the Credit Union.

At any rate, it's another late night. There is banana bread in the oven and I have to go make the struesel topping for it. Yum!