Nacho cheese! January 16, 2011

Lindsay, Lisa, and I started a blog on January 1st to host our photos from Project 365 (an initiative to encourage photographers and camera owners to take at least one photo a day for a year). You can find it here: Cardigans and Cameras!

Anyways, on Friday, I posted pictures of some nachos I made for myself and Nathan using leftover taco meat from taco salads. I wanted to post the “recipe” for it here, along with more nom photos.

Ingredients:

1-2 lbs of ground beef

1-2 packages of Taco Bell original taco seasoning. (It is a package for each pound of beef.)

1 16 oz bag of mexican blend shredded cheese

1 bag of Tostitos Scoops

The directions:

Follow the directions on the taco seasoning packs to prepare the meat. This usually involves browning and draining the meat, pouring in the seasoning and some water, then simmering until the water is gone. While your meat is cooking, lay out the scoops on a cookie sheet. Spoon the desired amount of taco meat into the scoops and sprinkle the desired amount of cheese on top. Place into the oven on Broil until cheese is melted.

Voila! You made easy-peasy nachos!

A variation of this recipe is popular at my house in the form of Taco Salad. We spread Tostitos around the bottom/sides of a bowl and toss on some shredded lettuce, taco meat, and shredded cheese. The secret to the taco salad is the toppings. We sometimes use sour cream (Lin and Lisa do, at least, I hate the stuff), salsa, or queso (Tostito brand in the jar is best), but the only consistent topping for the salad is the dressing. Hidden Valley Spicy Ranch. Get it. Now. It is like Ranch dressing and Salsa made sweet sweet love and had a little taco salad topping baby. So. Good.

Source

I promise that you won’t regret partaking in that deliciousness. Nom.

Kingsley is fashion forward December 11, 2010

Kingsley has fantastic taste in clothes…

 Told you so.

FYI, I’m on a 7 day cruise. Awesome.

Story of my life December 9, 2010

Let me show you a typical sight at my house.

Just keeping it real.

Set of Pets: When you hit a dog with a shrink ray December 7, 2010

Now that you’ve met my furmonster, as well as the canine and feline members of LMom’s pack of pets, let me introduce you to the newest members in my pet line-up, my parents’ toy australian shepherds.

You may be wondering, is that even a real thing? Well, according to the AKC, it is not a recognized breed (or size divison for its breed), but it was the perfect fit for my family. My aunt had gotten two, and after my parents dog-sat hers, they had to have some for themselves. So, we made the drive to Texas and returned with two of our own.

The first of the Aussies is Bandit. He is such a sweet dog, but is a little bit neurotic. For a long time we thought he was just kinda dumb, because he never learned his name, and stares with a confused look sometimes. Turns out, he is hearing impaired, and the poor thing just doesn’t hear the sounds we make for them. He has missed out on a lot of excitement because he sleeps through it since he can’t hear anything happening. Don’t worry too much, his brother has started to wake him up when something is going down. He likes to snuggle and loves when we pet him. He is a lot like LMom’s Boudreaux because he will put his paw on your hand and pull it to him if he wants a petting. He only likes this attention when he chooses it, though. If you try to pick him up when he doesn’t want to be touched, he will shriek like you are stabbing him or pulling off his toenails. It’s kind of ridiculous. His other weird quirk is his collecting habit. He loves to pick up anything and everything he can and run outside with it. Once he gets outside, he just stacks it all up, doesn’t bury it or hide it… he makes one giant pile of objects. We’ve found shoes, socks, washclothes, toys, t-shirts, silverware, dog treats, plastic cups, etc. It’s amazing what he finds to take out there.

As much of a sweetheart as Bandit is, Outlaw is a thousand times more of one. Basically all this fluffly version of a chihuahua does is snuggle up next to you and sleep. It’s kind of a cute trait. He is like his brother in that all he wants is to be petted. He has become a helper of sorts to Bandit, since he has problems hearing, and Outlaw makes sure to always include him. This happens very comically when Outlaw jumps on Bandits head while he sleeps and Bandit is jolted awake from it. Following this wake-up call, they run around biting each other’s leg. Finally, about 45 seconds later, they pay attention to what Outlaw woke Bandit up for in the first place. Outlaw is also obsessed with laser pointers. If he hears the jingle of the chain on the laser pointer, he starts jumping around looking on the floor for it. Hilarious. He will play for a good 10 minutes straight chasing it all over the house, upstairs, downstairs, on walls, on people. It has to be one of the cutest things in the world, and it definitely keeps him out of trouble.

Have I mentioned that Kingsley and the Aussies love to play together? No? Well, they do. The little boys get crazy excited when Kingsley visits my parents, who affectionately call him “Big Friend,” and they all run around like they are possessed. This eventually quiets down to the low roar of playing captured in the photo above.

To close out my set of pets, let me introduce you to our frequent house guests. I honestly think that they are at my parents’ more than I am, if that tells you anything.

Left to right: Holly, Kate, and Sydney

The photos of Outlaw and Bandit were taken by the ever amazing Lindsay. The photo of my aunt’s aussies was taken from her facebook, so I’m guessing someone in her family took it.

Set of Pets: Cats got your tongue? December 5, 2010

See? I can post more than once in the same week. Shocker. Needless to say, the lack of student teaching in my life nowadays is allowing me way more time to blog. Let’s get to it, shall we?

In case you missed them, check out my furmonster and the weenie dog round-up to meet 6 of my dozen or so “rental pets.”

In addition to LMom’s herd of hot dogs, she also has three cats each with a distinct personality.

Franklin is the newest addition to LMom’s clan. He is only a few years old (three, I think) and was just a kitten when Lindsay and I found him on a road trip to visit a friend. He was holding one of his front paws to his chest like it was broken, and we couldn’t leave him to die (Look at those eyes! Could you?). So we brought him home, and he is now LMom’s favorite cat (probably because he thinks he is a dog… he even licks your hand sometimes… creeper). Since he joined the family, he has had surgery to remove his hurt leg, but doesn’t seem to notice since he wasn’t using the leg anyways. The funny thing about Frank is that he still has the correct number of toes (he’s a hemingway cat with six toes on each paw). That is craziness.

Sylvie came to LMom in an equally unusual way as Franklin. After Lindsay, Lisa, and LMom lost their house to a fire, they sent their neutered male cat, Homer, to stay with LMom’s aunt while they looked for a new house. When the family asked for Homer back, they were given a pregnant female (who was the same size and coloring as Homer, albeit, but a neutered male ≠ a pregnant female). After realizing that “Homer” was not in fact Homer, they chose Sylvie as her new name. She’s a petite cat, much smaller than the other two, but she makes herself known in a very loud, and usually obnoxious, way. Sylvie loves to knead things, whether it’s the dog bed, a blanket, or your leg; this cat makes herself comfortable. She’s also best friends with Tibby, and we often find her curled up with him and giving him a bath. The most endearing thing that Sylvie does is collect leaves. We’ll sit in the den and hear these sounds that would make you think she was dying, but she’s not. She’s just announcing that she is bringing you a leaf. At the end of each day, you can usually find a small pile of leaves in the living room that she brought inside that day. Occassionally, she even snags an entire branch and drags it in through the doggie door. You’d think she was being strangled the way she carries on about those.

The oldest feline member of the family is Marvin. He is an eleven year old, large black cat, who stays away from humans unless he wants to sleep on their heads or white bath towels. Poor Marvin is a bully in the neighborhood but is really bad at it. Seriously, this cat always loses his fights, and it is typical to see him looking a little rough around the edges when he comes home at night. He doesn’t seem to mind, as long as there is a nice warm head to sleep on when he returns from his would be conquests.

All three amazing photos are by the incredible Lincredible. As always.

Set of Pets: Weenie dog round-up December 3, 2010

I lied. This week. Hah. Let me finishing telling you about my “pets,” almost an entire semester later. Way to be on top of things, Lauren.

Last time, I introduced you to my numero uno, Kingsley. If you missed meeting my fluffmonster, go fall in love with him now. You won’t regret it.

 After Kingsley, I have to tell you about the set of pets that has been with me the longest now: LMom’s petting zoo. Residing at her house are four daschshunds and three house cats. She also has a house guest in the form of a fifth dachshund, her grand pup.

This is Casey, a ten years old red dachshund. He is a dilute, which basically means that his nose and nails are brown instead of black. LMom refers to them as cinnamon. She seems to think that it makes him cuter. Loving Casey is kind of like loving a teddy bear; he snuggles with you, but he has a brain the size of a peanut. That’s okay though. His love makes up for it. If you are sick, KK, as he is affectionately called, is the dog for you. He would stay in bed for 18 hours straight if his human allowed it. Like I said, he is LMom’s favorite, which is lucky since she’s his favorite too. He won’t stay in a room if she isn’t in it. Also, Casey is the laziest, most spoiled rotten dog ever. He loves whipped cream, but doesn’t come to the person giving it out. He looks at you pitifully, whines, and opens his mouth for you to deposit it into, all from his seat on the couch.

This is Thibodeaux. He’s French, or so we say because of his flighty, haughty attitude. His name doesn’t hurt one bit though. This 7 year old, long haired beauty is about as vain as a dog can be. You can’t say anything rude to him about his looks, or he will sulk and refuse to acknowledge that you exist for several hours. It’s like a doggy version of “You are dead to me.” Harsh. It’s cool though, because he is a pretty dog, who is sweet to cuddle with because he acts as if he has no bones.

Boudreaux is my short legged buddy, and the twin brother of Tibby. He has this ridiculous need to feel loved, which can be filled by anyone paying him the slightest bit of attention. I’m being serious. You look at him, and he thinks you are his best friend. It’s endearing though, and over the 4 years I’ve known him, I’ve grown to love the little dude. If you pet him, he will snuggle closer. If you stop petting him, he will put his head under your hand and force you to continue. Talk about cute.

Abby is the baby of LMom’s pack, at 5 years old. She’s a “dapple” which basically means she’s got crazy spots all over her. Speaking of crazy… This little girl dog is full of fears and neurosis. It’s so ridiculous that it’s cute and endearing. She’s terrified of hats, sunglasses, flashlights, television remotes, cordless phones, Kingsley, and loud sounds. Hilarious. She’s super sweet, and a huge snuggle bunny if you have her in the bed with you. She likes to curl up under blankets and stay warm. She also only likes about 7 people in the whole world, and I happen to be one of them. It’s because I fed her string cheese. Let’s be honest.

Isabelle (AKA, Izzy, Belly, or Izzybelly) is LBro’s dog. She’s almost the same age as Kingsley, about 2 now. She’s a total doll, but if a dog could be a tomboy, she would be it. She’s as rough and tumble as any of the boys (more so than a few of them *cough*KK*cough*) and loves to catch bugs and small creatures to eat for snacks. Her favorite post snack activity is kissing her humans, but she only kisses on the mouth and up the nose. That’s all you want as a pet owner, dead lizard kisses. Awesome. A random fact about Izzy, when she was a puppy, we would stick her in the butter compartment of our fridge, earning her the title of IzzyButter for the first year of her life. Too bad she grew up and is now Izzy Crisper Drawer. lol. Doesn’t have the same ring to it.

All photos featured in this post are taken by my incredibly gifted roommate, Lindsay. She’s totes awesome, and I am totes jealous.

That’s it for the Weenie dog round-up!

Next up: LMom’s cats that cause hounds to dash

Set of Pets: Kingsley September 13, 2010

So, I am an animal lover. I am. I love me some pets. I love to play with them. I love their company. I love how they are so loving. But, in spite of my loving animals, I do not own any of my own. Not a single one. Not a fish, a hermit crab, a bird, a cat, a dog. Nothing. You know what though, I don’t have to. Everyone I know, everyone I am close to, has a pet (or 7) that they are (almost) always more than willing to share with me! At least, I hope so. Anyways, this week, I want to introduce you to my pets. And trust me, there are a lot of them.

The first one I want to talk about, is my numero uno puppah. This is the dog that lives with me 3/4 of the year (or more!). He lives with me at school. This is the pet that I feel like I make a difference with, the one that I hope would miss me when I’m gone. I have a substantial role in his care, and he has a huge role in my daily life.

It’s Kingsley! He is Lindsay’s dog, and since she is my roommate, he lives with us. He is a two year old Rough Collie, which is an uncommon breed for our area (probably because it is so hot). We chose a collie because they are fairly calm, smart, easy to train, friendly, and loyal as all get out.

Because he is an only dog, we spoil him rotten. He is always being showered with attention by all three of us at the L3 household. This includes getting treats, getting played with, being snuggled, getting pets and butt scratches (he loves being scratched on his back between his hips). He was spoiled from the moment we got him. We all drove to pick him up, and each spent a third of the ride home with him in each of our laps.

He’s a pretty smart dog. We were pleased when he was house trained within days. He can sit, shake, lay, come, stand, and high five on command. We are working on our stay and fetch commands still. He also knows several phrases, such as “Let’s go for a ride” to get in the car, “Let’s go night-night” to get into the bed, “Let’s go outside” to go outside, and “Let’s go inside” to go back inside. My favorite phrase he knows is, “Let’s go get Lisa!” at which point he runs to her room and jumps on her sleeping body. Too cute. (as a side note, he can do this with most anyone’s room at the homes where he stays for any period of time)

 

This dog is not only smart, but he is beautiful. He is a really pretty dog. We had him shaved this summer (his fur was out of control), but I don’t regret it because of how hot it has been. This meant he looked a little awkward, but he is starting to just look like a smooth collie, which is pretty cute. Not only is he pretty (fluffy or not), he is amazing to watch run. He is a very athletic dog, a fast runner, and watching his coordination in the yard is truly spectacular. Speaking of his coordination, Kingsley is also one of the most clumsy dogs I’ve ever encountered. He frequently face plants, slips, trips, and drops his toys in our house. He is not a very good catcher if thrown a toy or a treat. It’s comical really. Most of the time when he is slipping, he is running on our wood floors. They are tricky to us, too.

We also love how funny he is. He “talks” to us, frequently, by making a sound that is akin to a Wookie from the Star Wars saga. He often gets in your face as he makes this noise, letting you know that he wants (attention). Also, if he wants whatever food you are eating (which he doesn’t always want), he will rest his head on your lap and look up at you. Very very cute. He will also give good kisses to us, but only on our faces.

I absolutely adore Kingsley. He is definitely the most like a pet to me (even if
he isn’t technically mine once we all move out). I do what I can in the raising and care for him, and I love him unconditionally.

When a 5 year old takes your camera… September 12, 2010

I went to spend the weekend at my parents’ house for Labor day last week. My family tends to be fairly traditional about the American/Patriotic holidays. We like to grill on Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day. You know the drill. My brother is a beast on the grill, and we always have a huge spread of steaks, fish, shrimp, sausage, hamburgers, and hot dogs. We even grill up some veggies and fruits usually.

All of that is besides the point for the post though, because I’m a failed blogger who always forgets to take photos.

What isn’t beside the point is that when my brother comes over to my parents’ house, he brings his family. He has two sons, we’ll call them AJ and DJ (for their poor mother’s sake). AJ is 5 and DJ will be 2 at Thanksgiving. Both are complete and total camera hogs. They will ham it up for a camera. They also enjoy stealing my camera and running all over the house snapping pictures. On Monday afternoon, I took my Grandmother back to her apartment, and when I returned, AJ said, “Aunt Lauren, your camera has been safe! It hasn’t left my side since you left!” The following is what I found when I plugged in my memory card.

Need a ride? Take the Taxi! September 8, 2010

May I present to you this little gem:

On our way home from the game last weekend, we pulled up next to this fantastic vehicle. I’ll be honest, I laughed. The paint job. Oh man. And the name. I blurred out parts to protect the innocent, but at the top, Taxi is actually the last four digits of a phone number. Sweet.

I’m sure this is run by a student from my university, hoping to make a few bucks on the side by shuttling drunken college students, and I don’t want to knock him for that. He’s got moxie fo’ sho’. But, his van makes me think that I would just designate a friend. That’s kind of counter-productive to his business.

What about you? Have you ever seen something that just made you think “What were they thinking??”

Breaking the rules, now only $15! September 7, 2010

So, as I have previously described, I am a huge college football fan. This being the case, I, along with Lindsay and Lisa, attended our season opener on Saturday. It was a great game. We crushed our opponent.

None of that was the point of this post. The point is… when it comes to college athletics, all the boring stuffy rules of reality are suspended, and fans are frequently allowed to do things that are usually frowned upon. Our parking space during the football game is the perfect example of this.

We drove all over campus looking for a place to park. Our favorite lot, where we have parked for the past two seasons, was reserved for game workers (I call bologna on this one). Not only had they swapped the lots around, but they raised the fee for public lots, to a whopping $15, up $3 from last season, and $5 from two seasons ago. So, after circling campus, which is not a simple task due to road closures and tailgating, we come across an unmapped public lot, closer to the stadium than our beloved game worker lot.

You see that sidewalk in front of the two pedestrians? That is where we got into our lot. That’s right. We ramped a sidewalk. It was awesome. We squealed with delight about this. But the icing on the cake was the sign we saw driving to the spot we were directed towards.

We drove right past this sign, to park on the grass. We are bad to the bone, born to be wild, rebels without a cause. Hold on, I take that back. There was total cause in the form of 50,000+ people swarming onto campus for a sporting event. Totally worth it.

I am proud to report to you that Lisa’s car was still parked on the grass when we returned to it 6 hours later. Awesome.

(Thank you Lindsay for sacrificing your $15 for parking/rules breaking, and your $8 for “lunch” at the game, and your treating us to real dinner afterwards. Lisa, thank you for your contribution to our makeshift dinner in the stands. It was pretty rockin’.)