Skinny Eggplant Parmesan.

This dish was doomed from the start. I was getting ready to make dinner and realized it said I needed 1 large egglant (2 lbs). My eggplant didn't seem to large. I weighed it. 14 oz. Damn. So I headed off to Wal-Mart because I know Target doesn't carry eggplant and I was too lazy to drive 5 miles to Safeway. So I went to Wal-Mart and luckily they had eggplant. I went to to the register and the cashier asked me "what are you going to do with the eggplant?" I told her we are making eggplant parmesan. (blank stare) "Eggplant parmesan is kind of like a casserole and just has veggies and cheese in it." "Oh".

Alas we were home. I did the first step of slicing the eggplant so I can put it in the oven on the baking sheet and realized some of my slices were a little small. They proceeded to burn in the oven and I only had a small picking of good slices - this would come in handy later. So I salvaged what I could and decided to move on.

I was looking for a dish and realized the dish I had that was required was dirty. I tried cleaning it for 20 seconds and realized it was too much work so I got a smaller dish. The rest of the dinner making was a bit half ass (I know - it was a bit half ass from the beginning but thats ok). I didn't really measure from there on out and I'm big on measuring because I am a baker, not a cook. I decided to pile on extra cheese on top because usually that makes things better. Usually.

I would say this dish was pretty good. I would make again since I think its pretty low in fat thanks to the nonfat ricotta cheese.

Recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/03/lighter-eggplant-parmesan-5-pts.html

Just a Typical Weekend...

Giveaway!

I'm giving away a pair of Stella & Dot earrings AND giving 15% off any order. Have a birthday coming up you need to shop for? Or want to get a headstart on your Christmas shopping? Smart money saving lady says "then you should take advantage of this offer."

Check out the deets here.

You're welcome.

Birthdays.

I had forgot to post pictures from my and Rob's birthday. For my birthday in June, we went to Monterey and went to lunch, the aquarium and did some light shopping.

Rob also took the day off work for his birthday but it was a low key day, per his request. We went to the Little Gym, hung around at home then went to pick up some Philly Cheese Steaks takeout and Baskin Robbins ice cream cake. Yummo.



Charlie's Italian impression



Busted.

New Challenge: Start Cooking More.

Foil balls, its whats for dinner! Learned today you can make baked potatoes in your crock pot. Sure it takes awhile (8 hours on low) but you aren't heating up that kitchen on these warm summer days. I'm wondering what takes more electricity - baking an hour in the oven or 8 hours in a crock pot? Am I the only one who thinks of these things?

I learned of this little trick today from this blog: http://realmomkitchen.com/7995/crock-pot-baked-potatoes/

I wanted to also share a new recipe from one of my favorite blogs. I had bookmarked it and my sister made it and it was GOOD. So I made it last night and Charlie liked it (but he loves him some Mexican food) and we had no leftovers. Its a pretty cheap recipe but it didn't make that much food.

You can check out the recipe here: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/03/cheesy-zucchini-enchiladas.html

I used canned enchilada sauce.

What are your favorite/easy/cheap/healthy recipes? I need inspiration!

Pals.

I always looked forward to the day Charlie and Buddy would play together. In the last few months, they started playing more often, typically tug of war. I got a couple videos of them playing a few months ago and never posted them but I think they are cute (because they are my children, I realize it may be boring for you all). I'm not sure exactly when these were filmed, it says they were filmed in December 2011 but I know thats not true!

Stella & Dot Update.

I'm obsessed. I have been for awhile but I didn't want to "bore" you all with that and I rarely talk to my friends about it except for the ones that are "into it" and love the jewelry. I have been obsessed with logging into the "stylist lounge" where I can read up on current events and see where I am on track commission wise for the month, I also go into "stylist space" which is basically a facebook for stylists to trade ideas, share successes, etc. I've had a few trunk shows and I'm averaging about $850 in sales for a trunk show which I think is pretty good for being a newbie (average trunk show is $1,000)! I make 25% of that so I've been a happy camper! I'm almost done paying back my investment - I invested more than I planned because I do believe the more you have to show, the more you sell. And I have some sweet jewelry to wear - bonus! I have already hit my first "jump start" which gave me $500 in free jewelry and I think I'm track to get 1 more before my first 100 days and possibly another but for now, my goal is 1 more jump start bonus while I'm in my jump start period. This will come in handy because Stella & Dot is coming out with handbags next week - fun!

This hobby is still for fun - a chance to get some "me" time with friends and meeting new friends. I had my first job at 10 and really do love working so I think this is filling any void I may have about staying home with Charlie and not going to the office. For the record, I have not once thought "I wish I was at work". So thats a good sign since I wasn't sure if the stay at home mom job was for me. I've also always wanted to open my own boutique and I think Stella & Dot is filling that want as well.

I'll be at a local boutique on Sunday so send me some good vibes! I have no idea what to expect but I'm hoping to have a couple sales and perhaps book a trunk show. My September is filling up fast and for that I am thankful.

So thats my "attention whore" update for you all in case you were wondering how its going! I'm really excited for "Q4" - the busiest time of year for Stella & Dot.

I'd love for you to follow me on Facebook so you can be updated on sample sales, events, new product and more!

www.facebook.com/shopwithalyssa

And of course, contact me if you are interested in having a trunk show or becoming a stylist!

Lazy Sundays are the Best.

Phone Dump.

I was going through my phone pictures and found some of Buddy that I thought would be fun to post. As you can see, he can pretty much lay anywhere, on anything. We love you Buddy! Sorry you don't get as much attention as you used to... :(