Sniff Test Triumph & Tagged...

Remember this post by Lakia? I can't recall one time I've been able to do my own sniff test.....until NOW!! WOOHOO!! Am I crazy for being excited about this??!!

I've Been Tagged by Sophia!!!

This was fun!!!!!

Rules:
1.)Respond: answer the questions on your blog.
2.)Replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention, add one more question of your own.
3.)Tag eight other people

What's your current obsession? Crocheting...

What's your must have fashion need? Headband (I know it's sad..)

What are you wearing right now? Pajama pants and tee

What's your favorite food? Black Bean Soup

What do you do for fun? Crochet, Read, Hang w/Friends

What made today special? Woke up this morning

What would you like to learn to do? Sew

What's the last thing you bought? Beans and veggies..

What are you listening/watching right now? Nothing..

What's your favorite weather? Freezing Cold (Who doesn't like snuggling weather)

What's your favorite quote? We don't live in a world of reality, we live in a world of perceptions.-Gerald J. Simmons

What do you think of the person that tagged you?
She's an awesome, intelligent, beautiful young woman with an amazing blog.

If you can have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be? Vancouver

What would you like to have in your hands right now?
Chocolate Chip cookies

If you could be any animal, which would you choose? Eagle

If you could give one piece of advice to someone wanting to loc or go natural, what would it be? Don't let the negative comments or views of others affect your choice to go natural or loc...

What language would you like to learn? French & Creole

What do you look for in a friend? Honesty, Empathy, & Loyalty

Who do you want to meet in person? Mrs. Obama

What's your favorite type of music? Neo-Soul

What's your dream job? Good Question...

Do you admire anyone's style? No..

Describe your personal style? Comfortable & Outdated..

What's your favorite t.v show? Bones, at the moment..

What's your favorite ice cream flavor? Haven't had any in years..but I guess it would be Butter Pecan

What's your favorite makeup brand? Don't use any...

What's your all time favorite perfume? Pacifica Malibu Lemon Blossom

What's you fondest childhood memory? Age 6, visiting my maternal grandparents in Louisiana..

What is a current life goal you are working on right now? Writing a cookbook..

What is one item in your home you have more of than anything else? Chapstick

Sadly, I've never been good at tagging others but here goes...
Southern Girl
BrownButtahfly
Carmen
Cluizel
Shawna
Disregard if you've already been tagged...

Sandwiches...YUM!!!!

1) Boca Burger w/ Chips - Johnny Rockets has The Streamliner, a vegan burger, that is amazing!!! My wallet doesn't allow me to go often, so here's my version...
2) Black Bean & Rice Burrito - Just black beans and rice
3) Vegan Deli Chik'n Salad Sandwich - I got nothing but good things to say about this recipe..
4) Chik'n Tacos - I really don't think a person can go wrong with tacos. These were made with Morningstar Chik'n Strips and veggies..

Enjoy Your Weekend!!!

Say What??!! 3 Years Already!!!!??

Ok....so I did say in my last post I would post new pics for my 3 year locversary, June 11th!! WOOHOO!! My hair has never, and I mean never (cause you know how when you were a little girl your hair was long when straightened right?), has my hair ever been this long.. WOW!! I know I say this every year, but for those who can't wait for their locs to fall, it's coming! No matter how well I took care of my natural loose hair it would have taken forever to reach this length without straightening. I'm one who's hair was 5 inches straightened and barely an inch after being washed...

I really really detest posting individual pics on blogger but I don't have any software that allows me to do collages. So, I decided to save pics using the Kodak Easyshare Gallery site and see how they turn out. My only complaint is it cuts off some of the pics. Please excuse the blurred images but the CD's that have the original pics are packed away....

I have a friend who's been transitioning from the perm to natural. She recently cut off all her permed ends and flat ironed her hair, made me really miss my loose hair and wonder if I would have loc'd if I was introduced to the "Chi" type products. What was I thinking?! I'm so in love with my locs I can't stand it!

What's For Breakfast....?

1) French Toast - I used soymilk, cinnamon, almond extract, and a little flour for the coating. This has become a family favorite!
2) Breakfast Pizza - Had some extra pizza dough laying around. I used marinara sauce, Gimme Lean Sausage, some leftover Morningstar Chik'n Strips and green peppers. Who says you can't have pizza for breakfast?!
3) Breakfast Scramble Burrito - Tofu, red onion, green pepper, and tortilla..NICE!!!
4) Breakfast Scramble Taco - Same as above just added a taco and some taco sauce...

Enjoy Your Week!!!

More Crochet Happenings & The Fat Smash Detox Recipes Request

Hey Guys!!!

Still nothing going on with me and I figured it would be better to post my 3 year locversary pics in a couple weeks... I apologize for slacking on my posts....

First up.....crochet projects...
1) Baby Blanket
2) Another scarf...I've made so many scarves it's not even funny...
3) & 4) My friend requested baby beanies and booties for her friend. I took the beanie, wrapped a chain around it and placed the booties inside. Kind-of looks like a goodie bag....ha! Pic #2 is the whole shebang..

And as requested from Happiest Nappy, here are all the Fat Smash Detox Friendly recipe's I have used. I can't see myself detoxing again for a long time...but you never know...ok, so I didn't realize I had so many pics of detox stuff...phew... Here's the thing, alot of the recipes were off-the-fly. I will either link to the cookbook used for the recipe, link to the actual recipe, link to a similar recipe, or let you know the ingredients I used.

1) Oat Pancakes (replaced flour with ground oats) & Breakfast Scramble.
2) Breakfast Scramble (minus the cheez sauce) & added veggies.
3) Banana Oatmeal
4) Falafel w/ Spinach - Don't remember if this was the exact recipe I used but I used chickpea flour instead of flour (don't know if that's allowed...
5) Salad w/ Spiced Chickpeas - you can use any spices for this.
6) Lettuce Wraps
7) & 8) Stir-Fries
9) Plantain, Black Beans, & Stir-Fry.
10) Vegetable Stew (exclude the dumpling & cornstarch).
11) Mushroom & Porcini Soup - from Veganomicon.
12) Black-Eyed Pea & Collard Soup - this is close to what I did.
13) White Bean Chik'n Chili - White Beans, Onions, Veggie Broth, Morningstar Chik'n Strips, green salsa, and spices...
14) Mushroom Curry w/ Spinach
15) Pakistani Dahl
16) Asparagus, Yuca, & Portabello
17) Stuffed Peppers - I stuffed the peppers with leftover rice, veggie crumbles, tomatoes, and spices. Or you can use this recipe. I forget if a small amount of cheese is allowed.
18) Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie - veggie crumbles, veggies, spices, and mashed sweet potatoes.
19) Tamale Pie
20) Baked Tofu, Plantains, & Brown Rice
21) General Tao Tofu (minus the sugar)
22) Eggplant Lasagna
23) Black Bean Soup (minus garnishes)
24) Yellow Split Pea Soup - I think from La Dolce Vegan....?
25) Stuffed Pepper Soup
26) Barefoot Contessa Lentil & "Sausage" Soup - I subbed tofurky beer brats, don't know for sure if detox friendly, but it's just as good without them.
27) Vegetable Soup - Just a whole bunch of root veggies in a pot.

Food & Crafts...

Don't really have much to blog about at this time..But, here are some pics of what I've been doing lately..food and crafts...hehe!

Crafts

1) A hat and scarf for my friend, it was her birthday!
2) A bracelet I made for the same friend..as you can see her favorite color is purple..
3) Lando's friend's wife had a baby boy and he requested I make them a small blanket with the Cleveland Browns in mind...the colors aren't spot on but my choices were limited in the soft yarns.

Food

My eating these past couple months has been horrible. It's as if I've reverted back to my junkatarian days filled with coffee and cookies, so sad. Here are some pics of my healthier choices..

1) Stuffed Pepper Soup - Fat Smash Detox Friendly. This was really good. I love stuffed peppers and this soup took so little time to prepare..
2) Vive Le Vegan's Oat & Apple Pancakes w/ Banana Topping - Fat Smash Detox Friendly. I won't say they were the best pancakes I've ever eaten but they did hit the spot.
3) Eggplant Lasagna - Fat Smash Detox Friendly. AWESOME!!! I've wanted lasagna for some time now and this was perfect!!
4) Yellow Split Pea Soup - Don't remember where I got the recipe from but it was really good.

Enjoy Your Week!!!

I'm Still Alive.....

LOL!!! I've been kind-of busy lately and I'm in such anticipation to leave Orlando. Still waiting on things to get settled with Lando's job so we can get things rollin'. I would sure love to win the lottery...guess that would mean I'd have to play huh?

As you can see from the above pic, I'm desperately in need of a retightening. I wear this style 99% of the time... Athena and I both put on our serious faces...hehe...what's up with my pets and two different color eyes...?

Hair Regimen...

Well, Still Waters asked, a couple posts ago, what my hair regimen is. Here it is....

-Since the day I came back from my install I've been wearing a satin bonnet or loc pocket when I'm home to prevent pet hair getting in my locs and lint. Lando is always joking about me wearing one all the time...We were in Wally World the other day and a dude with long locs was in front of us. They were literally peppered with lint all the way through, to the point that if you removed the lint he would no longer have locs. Lando had not appreciated my efforts so much as he did at that moment....

-I spritz my hair on a daily basis with a water, aloe vera gel & essential oil mixture. It not only helps moisturize my scalp, but livens up my locs. Now I love me some Greg Juice but I went through my bottle so quickly, I'm talkin it was gone in a little over a month...The next time I purchase some I will have to dilute it to make it go further but for now I'll stick to my spritz.

-As for shampooing...I'm now using diluted Dr. Bronner's Tea Tree Liquid Soap and Nature's Gate Tea Tree Conditioner(once a month).

-Just recently, I started using coconut oil as a moisturizer to my scalp and locs. I've read that it helps with dandruff so I gave it a go. Here's the one I use, it smells like actual coconut. Coconut and jojoba oil both mimic the skins natural oils but jojoba isn't cheap and wouldn't last nearly as long. After all my lotions are used up coconut oil will be my primary skin moisturizer as well. It has also helped soften my locks.

And that's all folks!!! I use a spritz, a shampoo & conditioner, & coconut oil. Oh! Let's not forget the ACV rinses every once in a while...

Food Pics...

1) Cinnamon Buns - These were pretty good. Wish I had some raisins on hand though... Lando wasn't fond of them.
2) Banana Nut Bread Cookies - I had an extremely ripe banana and a handful of chocolate chips, found this recipe and was in heaven!!! They tasted so pillow-y and delicious...
3) Banana Pancakes - YUM!! These require very little ingredients and I always have bananas on hand.
4) Baked Tofu, Brown Rice, & Plantains - By baking the tofu it firmed up without me having to pan fry and was quite good. I'm thinking teriyaki or jerk baked tofu is in my near future!

The Weekend Is Near!!!! YAY!!!

The Big 3-0....Isn't it the new 20!!?? LOL!!!

Like I stated last year...I really didn't feel this specific birthday would be different from any other. Lando & I chilled with my folks, watching movies, eating sweets, and watching Athena run like crazy in their back yard. She's such a cutie!

I'm not going to reflect on all the negative that occurred while I was 29...I did have some pretty amazing positives, such as; my health, my family & friends, Lando, Athena joining the family, losing weight, increasing my veggie intake, becoming more comfortable in my cooking skills, alleviating my dry scalp, and so much more.....

Been locked for 2.5 years now!!! YAY!!! RMC asked if I could get my hair in a comfortable ponytail and I can. I didn't double up on the elastic band cause it would have pulled my hair too much. This ponytail was definitely more comfortable than my previous ones.

When I was a loose natural I used to love when my friend would put my hair in two big braids. It reminded me of my childhood. Even though I'm not even close to being a good braider I decided to give it a go. I still love this style though and can't believe it took me this long to try it. Very little tension was used since my edges are so fragile...I really need to work on my braiding skills but I think I did an ok job....ha!

Speaking of my edges...I've been researching essential oils that promote hair growth and came across this site. I will massage my edges with this mixture two times a day and will give an update on how things are going on my 3 year lockversary. I have quite a few pics on this blog showing my edges, so I'll have some comparison pics too... Nappturality has an alopecia forum of which many women have praised different products and oil combination's that have helped their edges and/or hair loss.

YUM-O!!!!!

1) VCTOTW Cookies & Cream Cupcake w/ Cookies & Cream Icing - WOAH!!! These were amazing! I left my cupcake tin over my parents house so I ended up using a mini bundt pan. So far my favorite recipe from this book is the Tiramisu cupcakes but these babies weren't to far behind. I think it's cause the Tiramisu cupcakes use Kahlua...hehe!

2) Tamale Pie - Fat Smash Friendly (Detox). I've always wanted to make tamales but thought it was too laborious, so I gave this recipe a try. It didn't fulfill my tamale craving but was good. I would recommend doubling the spices and using hot salsa or adding more heat.

3) Veganomicon Porcini-Wild Rice Soup - This wasn't a cheap meal to make but it made a huge pot of soup. If you like the taste of mushrooms you will love this soup, not to mention it's extremely hearty!

4 & 5) Veggie Stew & Veggie Stew w/ Biscuit Topping - I had a ton of stew leftovers and baked it with a biscuit topping.....YUM!!! Biscuits make everything taste better right??!!! I gotta give it up to the person who posted this recipe cause I'll be making this stew often....It's very comforting.

Enjoy Your Week!!!!!

Happy New Year!!!!!

I brought in the New Year sipping on a Martini and dancing with my best buds!! So much fun!!! The club that we went to required semi-formal attire and my friends wanted me to wear a dress. I decided to do a braid-out.

New Year's Spread!!!!

1) Soup Joumou - YUM! This one came out so much better then last year!!
2) Black-Eyed Pea & Collard Green Soup - I was stressing about the dishes I would make with both ingredients but decided to make a soup. This was awesome and hearty, I plan on making it every year.
3) Savory Biscuits - This recipe has yet to let me down.
4) JOVB Apple Cobbler - Wasn't much of a hit with me but Lando was pleasantly pleased!

Happy New Year!!!!!!

*Updated on 01/06/09 with close braid-out pic.