Doggies

I missed Molly this winter, when my feet were cold and she was not there to lay on them.

I miss Molly at night when there is no stinky dog paw in my face.

I miss Molly in the morning, when she is not there to snuggle up on the bed with me for a morning belly rub.

I missed Molly this spring, when there are no chewed up sticks in the front yard to clean up.

I miss Molly in the afternoon, when she's not there barking at the door to come in.

I miss Molly in the morning, when she's not there barking at the door to come in.

I miss Molly in the evening, when her soulful eyes are not staring at me from the other end of the couch.

I miss Molly on the couch, when her head is not there on my leg claiming me as hers.

I miss Molly's warm, dry, not right nose.

I miss Molly's incessant, high-pitched, irritating barking.

I miss Molly's refusal to go outside when she knew there food to be had.

I miss Molly's fear of the smoke alarm (which were all disabled while she was alive).

I miss Molly lying on the bathmat while I took a shower.

I miss Molly's smile when I come home.

I miss Molly's floppy ears.

I miss Molly's huge furry paws.

I miss Molly's stinky farts.

I miss Molly's snoring and groaning as she slept.

I miss Molly in her chair.

I miss the tip of Molly's tail wagging when she would see me come in the room, or hear my voice from another room.

I miss Molly.

The Best Mac 'n Cheese EVER

Kevin confirmed, this was the best mac 'n cheese ever! Note I made the sauce extra creamy & more than was mentioned in the recipe, because I have used similar recipes and they came out too dry. This was PERFECT. Also, I just used plain old breadcrumbs from a jar.

Ingredients:
4 ounces thick-sliced bacon
Vegetable oil
Kosher salt
2 cups elbow macaroni or cavatappi
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated
3 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated
2 ounces blue cheese, such as Roquefort, crumbled
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch nutmeg
2 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed
2 tablespoons freshly chopped basil leaves
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place a baking rack on a sheet pan and arrange the bacon in 1 layer on the baking rack. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the bacon is crisp. Remove the pan carefully from the oven - there will be hot grease in the pan! Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and crumble when it is cool enough to handle.

Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the macaroni and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt the butter in a medium pot and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or 2 more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, blue cheese, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and crumbled bacon and stir well. Pour into 2 individual size gratin dishes.

Place the bread slices in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until you have coarse crumbs. Add the basil and pulse to combine. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top of the pasta. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

Sensual Beef

Here is what I made for dinner saturday night - note the butcher said they dont get skirt steak anymore, and gave me sirloin tip. If I make this again, I would instead do tenderloin or something. I just dont like chewy meat. This was actually very tasty. The recipe is kinda vauge on the measurements. I recommend using just 1/2 cup of sprite & the rest to taste - it made a VAST amount of liquid that was wayyy to much:

The Sensual Beef Salad
Skirt Steak, Pineapple, Radish, Cucumber

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Serves: 4

Directions:Pineapple, Radish & Cucumber:
Mix ingedients in a salad bowl.

Skirt Steak:
Season skirt steaks with salt, pepper and chili flakes. Grill in olive oil to medium rare and allow to rest. Then slice thin against the grain.

Lime Dressing:
Mix ingredients in a bowl.

Assembly:
Add chopped cilantro and mint to pineapple, radish and cucumber. Dress with lime dressing and mix. Add sliced steak.

Send a link Print it Ingredients:Pineapple, Radish & Cucumber:
1 pineapple, peeled, diced
1 bunch radish, sliced
1 cucumber, sliced

Skirt Steak:
1 lb skirt steak
Salt and pepper to taste
Chili flakes to taste
1 oz extra virgin olive oil

Lime Dressing:
1 sprite
1/2 cup fish sauce
1 cup lime juice
4 chilies
1T white vinegar

Garnishes:
Chopped cilantro
Chopped mint

FIVE WEEKS!

I cant even believe I just realized I have been going to the gym 3 times a week for FIVE WEEKS IN A ROW! This is a new record, and the most physical exercise I have gotten since oh, year 1 of college, so that would be like 1993 or something.

Have only seemd to lost about 1 lb, maybe 2, have to check for sure. But I am doing good I think. Maybe I even feel a little more toned, it is hard to say. I thought maybe the other day my arms looked a little less fat.

This was a HUGE week for me working out. I have been doing the torturous Elliptical machine for the past 3 or even 4 weeks. It is some sort of love/hate relationship I think. Anyway, I used to just barely make it 20 minutes on that little bit of hell, but then I worked up to 30. It took me about 18 minutes to do a mile. My goal has been to do a mile in 15 minutes. This week I did a mile in LESS THAN 14 MINUTES!!!!!!!! This is huge! It means I am pushing myself. I sweat even! Yes really, Melissa Sweats! Its crazy I tell you, crazy! I am finding that I can keep my heartrate up, too. I can get up to like 145 and not die. I was certain I would a few nights, but I didnt, so I am braver now.

So all in all, its going well, and I am definately going to continue with hopes that I get more toned, and also of course lose weight, but just LOOKING less fatty would be great in my opinion.