Macaroni Fail

So one of the side effects of this sickness I've been battling is my ridiculous loss of appetite. I'm ordinarily a grazer - I will eat all day, every day if the opportunity strikes. Right now, I'm sustaining mostly on popsicles (made with real fruit so I'm at least getting some nutrients!) and Saltine crackers. Even when I feel hungry, I'll eat a couple bites and feel like I'm going to throw up. It's super fun.

I'm pretty much at the mercy of my cravings right now. You know when you're sick and only one food in the whole world sounds good, so it's all you want to eat? That's been me for the past two weeks. A coworker mentioned mac and cheese earlier, and my brain was like ding ding ding, there's your dinner! So I'm like, okay brain, but I'm not making an entire pot of pasta for myself when I'll probably eat less than five bites.

I remember seeing this delicious-looking thing on Pinterest:

Macaroni in a mug. Sounds perfect. It won't take as much time and effort as making a whole pot of macaroni and if I can't eat much of it, I won't feel as bad tossing it out. So I googled the recipe and it seemed simple enough. Macaroni, shredded colby jack cheese, water, milk. Cool.

The recipe called for a large mug or small bowl in case it overflows. I used this pretty large soup bowl and it still overflowed in my microwave. Luckily, it's just water, but still was annoying to clean up. I don't know how to fix this overflowing problem, so I can't help you there.

You put 1/3 cup of uncooked macaroni noodles in your mug {bowl} along with 1/4 cup + 1/3 cup water, then microwave it for 6 minutes, stirring at 4 minutes, 2 minutes, and 1 minute. When it's finished, you should have fully cooked pasta in a small pool of water. First problem: the water all soaked into the pasta before it was done cooking, which left me with a bowl of sticky, semi-crunchy noodles. {This could've been because I used regular macaroni noodles instead of whole grain noodles, which is what the recipe actually calls for.} I added another 1/4 cup of water and microwaved it for another minute, which made it done enough for me. 

Next, you add 1/3 heaping cup of shredded colby jack cheese, then microwave another 30-45 seconds. The only cheese I could find was colby jack + monterrey cheese, which I thought was good enough. I added the cheese and stirred it up a bit, then microwaved for 45 seconds. When it came out, the cheese was pretty well melted, but stuck to the macaroni like crazy, which made it super thick, and once it cooled, it kind of congealed into one superball of macaroni.

Okay, last step is to add a "splash" of milk. I added probably 1/4 cup and stirred, which did help to break up the cheeseball I now had on my hands, but after a couple of bites, I realized the milk had all absorbed into the pasta and it wasn't enough, so I added another 1/2 cup. That was definitely too much, but I swirled the pasta around for a good 30 seconds to try to dissolve the cheese more. 

The verdict? Not tasty. It was way too cheesy, but not creamy at all. It was like cooking pasta noodles, rolling them around in shredded cheese, and dousing the whole thing in water. Second of all, I thought this would make one cute little mug just for me. Nope, this practically filled up the entire bowl. 1/3 cup of pasta would in no way fit into a standard mug. It was dry and chewy, and I only managed about three bites before I dumped it down the disposal. 

I would recommend this method if you are cooking pasta for one, but I would play around with the recipe a bit more. Colby jack + monterrey was not good. I like a softer cheesy taste with my macaroni and this cheese was too sharp for my taste. If you're planning on cooking macaroni for more than one person, don't bother doing individual mugs. Just make a pot.

As a redemption, here is the recipe my mom has used since I was a baby, and it's still the best mac and cheese I've ever had. {sorry, Panera.} 

• Cook macaroni completely in a pot of boiling water.
• Add just enough milk to where the pasta absorbs it and you don't have any remaining in the pot. It's pretty easy to eyeball it if you stir as you pour.
• Add in as much or as little Velveeta cheese as you want, then add a spoonful of butter. I usually do three parts cheese to one part butter, but again, eyeballing it is usually best.
• Stir till it all melts.

Seriously, the best comfort food ever. Cheesy, creamy, and not too overpowering. I think I will be using my tried-and-true homecooked recipe from now on.

Quarantine

The past couple of weeks have been a crazy, sickly mess for me! It started about two weeks ago when I woke up early Friday morning and couldn't stop throwing up. I couldn't even keep water down so husband drove me to the doctor. I was still throwing up but they couldn't give me any IV fluids there because they were out of the IV tubing. The doctor told me if I needed fluids I could go to the ER, but I said I'd rather go home and try drinking water again. They took blood and gave me a shot for nausea, but I was so dehydrated that I passed out at some point. When I came to, I couldn't figure out why husband was saying my name over and over and why everyone was staring at me! So at that point, going to the ER was no longer a choice, so they wheeled me out to the car and I was whisked away. It took six different people three hours to finally get an IV started... that was pleasant. They gave me two bags of fluids, tested me for more things (all of which came back normal), and sent me home. I spent the next couple of days in bed, sucking on ice chips and popsicles.

Cut to three days later. I was finally starting to feel normal-ish again. Husband and I even went to see a movie that was required for one of my classes! Everything was great. Until I woke up early Sunday, throwing up again. I puked every 20-30 minutes for about nine hours, and we finally got the on-call doctor at my doctor's office to get me another prescription for anti-nausea medicine. I spent another day in bed and went back to the doctor the next day. They took more blood, everything came back normal, and told me that they wanted to CT my pancreas. Joy.

It's not the flu, it's not anemia, or diabetes, or ebola, or measles, or pregnancy. My hopes aren't high for pancreatitis, either. I'm assuming they will also check out my gallbladder during the CT, and my next thought is to be tested for celiac. The CT scan is tomorrow and my fingers are crossed that I can get some answers. On the bright side, it's only February and we've almost met our deductible!

My appetite is completely gone and I'm surviving on 600 calories a day on a good day, 300 calories on a bad day, if I eat anything at all. I think I ate nothing but Saltine crackers for about 48 hours at one point. I'm sure some people think I am just looking for attention or sympathy with all of the updates I've been posting on Facebook and Instagram, but that's not the case at all. I know there are people praying for me, and I want to give them a specific way to pray for me. I also want to keep people in the loop so I don't get a bunch of different people asking how I'm doing all day. And I'm definitely not looking for attention or sympathy. I would much rather feel like my old self again than feeling like I'm two steps from death at all times. I haven't gone to Zumba in over two weeks, I barely leave the house except to go to work, and all I want to do all day is lay in bed. That's not fun. That's not worth the sympathy. I believe God is taking care of me, and I believe everything happens for a reason. I'm just ready for that reason to reveal itself! :)

Fun Faves

Here are some things I've been loving over the last month!

1. Serial

I discovered this podcast a few weeks ago and listened to every episode in about a week. I love whodunnit stories! Definitely go give it a listen if you haven't already. I can't wait for season two!

2. Man v. Pin

I found this one when I was battling a horrendous flu a couple of weeks back (I think that's my fifth time having the flu this winter...) and I watched all of his videos in one bad, bed-ridden day. They're both informative and hilarious! Click here to watch!

3. Chocolate Toast Crunch

Okay, I love me some Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but things can only get better when you add chocolate, right? I've eaten two boxes already...

4. Orange is the New Black

Husband and I started watching this randomly and we are addicted. We watched the whole first season in less than two weeks, which is really saying something, considering how little he is home and how much homework I've had! It's a Netflix-only show and it's definitely for mature audiences only, so if you can handle those two things, give it a try!

5. Ghost

The Ella Henderson song, not the Patrick Swayze movie, although that is a good flick. I bought the song on iTunes pretty quickly after it hit the radio waves and I've had it on repeat quiiiite a bit lately.

More Updates!

Slowly, we are getting everything on my list done... at least, everything that can be done when it's 2 degrees outside! Here's some little changes and updates we've done recently...

I found this sweet Minnie holding Christmas lights on sale, and she just matches my Mickey on the porch! She will look quite nice out front next Christmas!

One more globe light down, one to go!

The new entry light!

Got some things put up in the hallway...

...and above the stairs!

I finally filled these frames, which were a wedding present, and hung them in our bedroom.

I also hung some shelves and a frame!

We got all the Christmas things taken down! The piano looks really empty now, but the new runner I ordered for the top still hasn't shipped... it should've shipped two weeks ago so I'm not so pleased.

We still have a few doors to paint, things to hang on the wall, and that pesky globe light in the kitchen to replace, but it's looking more and more like our home instead of an empty, boring generic house. It's still weird owning a house and I still have that thought in the back of my mind that we will have to pack it all up and move in the next couple of years. My long-term goal is to save up to finish the basement, so maybe the basement is the key to feeling like it's our house! We shall see...

Tater Tot Casserole

This is a favorite of the husband's because it's delicious, and a favorite of mine because it makes a lot (when you double the recipe like I do) and is super easy.

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped (I usually substitute onion powder, as we are not big onion people)
• 1 can condensed Cream of Mushroom soup
• 1 tbsp. ketchup
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 3 c. frozen tater tots

Cook the ground beef and onion in a 10 inch skillet over medium-high heat until the beef is well-browned, stirring to break up the meat. Pour off the fat.

Stir soup, ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce into the skillet.

Spoon the beef mixture into a 12" x 8" baking dish. Arrange the tots around the edge of the casserole. (I dump a bunch on top because just around the edge doesn't seem like enough...)

Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes or until tots are done - usually 30-35 minutes if you put extra on like I do :)

This gives us quite a few meals and reheats really nicely!

My First Collage

I've always loved the photo collage galleries on Pinterest and couldn't wait to do one in our new living room! It only took 2 1/2 months to finally put everything up but I'm really happy with the way it turned out. I may add more to it later on but it works for now!

The finished product!

I got this print of Shakespeare's sonnet 116 from Etsy. The frame is from Hobby Lobby.

Two of our wedding photos made it onto the wall! Both frames were from, where else? Hobby Lobby.

The D, the heart, and both patterned prints in white frames were from Hobby Lobby.

This print is from Etsy and the frame is from Target.

I think our living room looks a million times better without a giant bare wall staring at us!

90 Day Fiancé

I haven’t done weekly recaps of the 90 Day Fiance episodes but I will gladly give my two cents now that the season is over!

Justin and Evelin: Arguably the most boring couple of the season. Sure, the drama with the evil sister-in-law was exciting, but that lasted one whole episode. That chick needs to get a grip on reality. Evelin is a perfectly sweet, lovely girl and evil SIL immediately started hissing “she’s using him for a GREEN CARD!” over and over to anyone within earshot. Okay, I can see how that might be your first reaction to this situation but maybe you should get to know her first before making assumptions. In related news, Justin really pulled a jerk move by a) not mentioning one single word about Evelin to his family, b) refusing to let her meet his family for however long once she got here, and c) pulling the “this is Evelin - oh, and we are getting married in less than three months!” card. How horrible. I’m sure Evelin felt ambushed but the way she tried to reach out to his mom was genuinely touching.

Chelsea and Yamir: the second most boring couple of the season. First of all, I don’t think Yamir is the “Justin Timberlake of Nicaragua” as I can’t find anything substantial about him or Myla Vox online, and at the big dramatic press conference where Yamir’s meddling manager exposed Chelsea as the Yoko Ono of Myla Vox, there were about twelve people there. Shouldn’t the Nicaraguan Justin Timberlake need bodyguards and someone to handle press? Chelsea repeatedly refers to his home country as “NEE-KA-RAWA” and is fine with Yamir moving to another country for her, but will not move four hours away from her hometown for him. That seems fair. She snapped during the reunion special that she “doesn’t want to live in her parents’ basement forever” but has shown no desire whatsoever to get a job. How does she afford her peasant skirts and leather wrap bracelets?? Also, why doesn’t Nicaraguan Justin Timberlake have enough millions saved up for at least an apartment of their own?

Brett and Daya: I was all on board with the Daya Crazy Train in the first episode because of the whole “this ring isn’t real” and “why didn’t you bring me better flowers” thing. She tried too hard with Cassidy and nitpicked Brett to death. But then, Crazy Daya left and Normal Daya emerged. She bonded with Cassidy and put up with the “I know you’re here for a green card” talk from one of Brett’s many elderly lady friends. His roommates were the best part of this storyline by far. That being said, Brett is a creepy, slimy, gross man-child. He wears very shiny chapstick, giggles incessantly, and is attracted to Daya because she comes from a country where divorce is illegal. If Brett’s mom had any brains, she would shun Brett instead of Daya and go get mani-pedis with Daya and Cassidy on the reg.

Jason and Cassia: These two really grew on me. Like a fungus. I couldn’t stand either of them for most of the season, but I think these two weirdoes are pretty well suited for each other. Cassia started off the show with a temper tantrum, threatening Jason that she wouldn’t show up in Rio to meet him, and Jason’s dad spent a good part of the storyline Swiffering in the background. Jason, like many of the Americans this season, didn’t bother to take any time off to help his fiancée get acclimated, and Cassia was pissed that Jason wouldn’t put his phone down long enough to have a meal with her. You mean, buying junk for your lucrative eBay account isn’t supposed to be more important than your cat-eyed, hot mess of a fiancée? And then the whole scene where Jason abandoned Cassia in Vegas to go drink shots with his overgrown man-friends. Not cool, dude. But Cassia won major points with me when she didn’t leave every time he made her cry and she called out his brother on his “joke” about her only wanting a green card. Then Jason won a few points too during the finale when he flat-out asked Mohammed if he even loved Danielle. I think once they spend more time together and learn how to live with each other, they’ll be a good couple.

Danny and Amy: Danny is about as closeted as Russ from last season. Sigh. I like Danny enough but he is so clueless when it comes to women. Specifially, his fiancée. This girl comes from half a world away, the only child of a mother who clearly adores her, and she is beautiful and smart. So why does Danny immediately drop her off at his brother and sister in law’s house? Again, you couldn’t have taken one day off to hang out with this girl before she is stranded in the middle of nowhere with a couple of strangers who ask her to talk “African”? Amy handles this with class, as she does every other uncomfortable situation her gelled future husband puts in front of her. Brother sits between them on probably their only night alone so they aren’t “tempted”? No prob. She thinks she’s having a private, intimate dinner with her fiancé and he invites 30 of his closest friends and family along? Why not? Danny’s dad insults Amy, her hometown, her intelligence, and pretty much her entire race while his mom stares at the floor? Amy takes it all with a smile. On top of that, she plans a gorgeous, Pinterest-worthy wedding and fields a million questions from his nosy siblings who think that because Amy is a virgin, she is also completely ignorant about basic human anatomy and the entire subject of intercourse. I was very impressed with Danny’s father’s behavior at the rehearsal dinner and wedding. As much as he clearly despises anyone with different colored skin, he actually acted like an adult and was quite charming to Amy’s family. I hope Danny realizes what a catch he has because I’m sure Amy’s family would love to have her back in Capetown.

Mohammed and Danielle: Okay. Where do I even begin with this? Do I start with Mohammed attempting to call off their wedding because he would be responsible for Danielle once she’s his wife, according to the Jack Black-esque lawyer he consulted the day of his nuptials? Do I start with his repulsion for showing physical affection towards Danielle, which he blames on his religion while knocking back a few beers? Do I start with how all of America cheered as Danielle’s son called Mohammed out on his obvious disdain for his mother? I don’t even know. She clings onto him like an injured puppy while he stares at anything in the room except her. He threatens to leave multiple times whenever the subject of money comes up, which leads me to believe that while he is scamming her for a green card, she scammed him into marriage by implying she’s much wealthier than she actually is. According to reports I’ve heard, he went to stay with her friend immediately after the wedding and then proceeded to hit on the friend AND her teenage daughter. I knew he was slimy, but that’s a whole new level of slime. He and Danielle both reportedly have active dating profiles on the very website that introduced them and Mohammed repeatedly asks women to “message him privately” instead of commenting on his Facebook page publicly. And he basically said at the reunion that he didn’t love Danielle but came to America because he is adventurous and wanted a change.

I think that the couples who spent time together before the Visa was issued have a really good chance of making it: Chelsea and Yamir, Danny and Amy, Jason and Cassia. Getting married in three months in another country to someone you barely know clearly brings out the worst in these people but I absolutely cannot wait for the “where are they now?” episode in a few months.