Miscellaneous Goodness

Thrift stores almost always = awesome.  Awesome vintage finds, awesome furniture finds, awesome clothing finds...you get the point. So, I was more than pleased to find this forty year old Reader's Digest Atlas.  This is the kind of reference book that my mom always bought for me.  In the eighties and early to mid nineties the internet was not the go-to place for reference materials.  While having an almost unfathomable amount of information available to you at the click of a mouse is convenient - there is most certainly NOTHING better than holding a book in your hands.

Look at my new gem:

Can you believe this book was only $2.95 at my local GoodWill?  I gasped so loud at the register that I sucked all the air away from the cashier!  I was that surprised!  I promise you I'll treasure this until I die!

This is the first thing thing you see when you open the atlas.  It's an old world style of map that you only see now on television shows from the 14th - 16th centuries.

Beautiful and authoritative type face.  Look at the endless flourishes on the top and the bottom of the text.  Ahhh this Atlas is a tall glass of life!

See, told ya...1963!  Wonderful condition!  Someone's grandmother had this in her study or library.

You know I had to include a photo of my state and my CIT-TAY! A-T-L-A-N-T-A-G-A that's where I stay! LOL!

Do you have any Miscellaneous Goodness to share from the week?

RoseRedd Made It: Stuffed Zucchini

G'day folks! The recipe for this week is my stuffed zucchini!  Of course I'm not the first person to make stuffed zucchini but, I'd like to think that my recipe is pretty good.  I served this with a big field green salad.

What I love about this dish is that it's both tasty and healthy.

Ingredients List:
(4) Large Zucchini
(1) Large carrot
(1) Cup of mushrooms (bella would be best)
(1/2) Cup of scallions
(2) Leaves of basil
(1) Large heirloom tomato

Seasoning:
Sea Salt
Garlic
EVOO (Extra virgin olive oil)

Alright, so, I used four large zucchini squash.  I cut each zucchini in half and then cored each half.  I saved the "innards" to use for the stuffing.

Next, you want to chop up all the other goodies you want to include in your stuffing.  I used diced heirloom tomatoes, white mushrooms, scallions, fresh basil, and carrots.  You can really use anything you'd like.  Just be careful that you don't pick things that will turn to mush.

Next, I chopped fairly large "chunks" of mozzarella cheese.  I use the Polly-O brand.  I really like the quality of the cheese.  It's super yummers!

Next, I saute all the veggies, including the cored zucchini in skillet with a tablespoon EVOO (extra virgin olive oil).  I add garlic and a tiny bit of  sea salt in with the veggies.  Remember, salt will draw water out of your veggies and they'll loose their nice texture.  Don't forget that you can always season the stuffed zucchini before it goes into the oven.

Next, toss the mozzarella in with the mixture and spoon the stuffing into each zucchini shell.  Now would be the time to add additional seasoning before you pop it in the oven.  While all this is going on, I would pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Bake it in the oven until all the cheese is melted.  I like mine to be slightly brown.  Use your discretion.

Optional ingredients:  You can add day old bread and canned tomatoes to make this a more filling dish.  However, my version is for those with more than enough love on their handles!

Insider Tip:  I also saute and season the outside zucchini shell.

Here is what the final product looks like.

If you try my recipe, please share it on social media!  Use the hashtag #RoseReddMadeIt

GoodNites Would Have Saved our Lives!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of GoodNites. All opinions are 100% mine.

Hey y'all!  Ever run across a product that would have been perfect if you had it in the past?  Well that's how I feel about GoodNites.  GoodNites Bedtime Underwear is a product that provide absorbent protection for boys and girls ages 4 and up.  My little guy had the hardest time staying dry through out the night during his potty training.  The other brand that we used, sometimes leaked and caused him to be upset and set him back in his training.  Now the little guy has grown out of the need for such a product but, I sure wish I had tried them then!

GoodNites are slim, comfortable, and compact just like regular underwear!  They feature your child's favorite characters making them an easy choice for your little one during bedtime.  Notice how slim they are?  The material they're made out of is very light and soft.  My little guy would have jumped at the chance to wear these!

During a recent visit from family members the need for GoodNites arose!  My four year old cousin was having trouble sleeping through the night and nap times accident free. I was able to give his mother peace of mind by introducing GoodNites.  He wore them for every nap and for every bedtime.  He liked that they were "cool" and had Spider Man on them. He also liked that he could slip his big boy underwear over them without the bulky feeling that he had experienced with other brands!

Visit the GoodNites Facebook page for support and information about bedwetting. GoodNites Facebook page

I'm Gonna Share...You're Gonna Like It

I don't like to call my self a lifestyle blogger.  I think of myself as more of a miscellaneous blogger.  I don't want to have to talk about any one particular thing - all the time.  I'm not like that in my real life so, I don't want to even attempt to be that way in my virtual life.

Today I want to talk about my reproductive system.  And no, this isn't TMI.  I find that we women can help each other out a lot just by sharing.  Brace yourself.  This isn't going to be a post about skinny girls in white jeans frolicking down some pristine beach with pink sand!  This is some real shit. Some my back aching, my bra too tight, my hips swaying from the left to the right - type shit.

I have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS).  I was diagnosed when I was thirteen.  However, it really didn't affect me until my mid-twenties.  I was even told that it would make conceiving a child very difficult.  So, uh, yeah...that symptom skipped me because Picard is alive and well four years later!  I had the hair growth on my face, the weight gain, the insane cycles and all that.

BUT...when I turned the big 3-0, something changed!  My ovaries were in full revolt against me!  I was taking 600mg of Ibuprofen like it was nothing.  I went to the doctor and found out that I had some large cysts.  They treated me with a high dose birth control ON TOP of my IUD so, I was acting super cray!  It worked though...for a while.  Then, I was experiencing pain again just like before.  This time, surgery was placed on the table and I jumped at that chance!  

Turns out my ovary had ruptured and attached itself to some of my innards! No wonder I was in pain!  That ovary and the Fallopian tube were removed. The good doctor even did some ovarian drilling on the remaining ovary as a preventative measure.  The surgery was done laparoscopically and now I'm recovering.  This recovery business is real!  I can just imagine how much more difficult it would have been had laparoscopy not been an option.

This ordeal went on way longer than necessary.  I ignored a lot of the symptoms because I've got a life and I didn't want to stop to pay attention to my body.  HORRIBLE mistake!  I would like to prompt you to take stock of how you're feeling because the quality of your life can improve drastically if you just take care of yourself.

Turns Out...I'm a Hater.

Hello you blog reader you!  Recently, I had an encounter with someone I truly admire and respect.  She wrapped my entire life in a nice box with a bow on it and gave it to me!  In other words, she gave me my life!  I'm a budding self-taught graphic designer.  Therefore, I'm constantly comparing myself to those that have earned a graphic design degree.  I only do this because I have insecurities about the fact that I spent money on an education degree and can't afford to go to design school.

That's the back story.

So, one day, a friend of mine and I were looking at some design work on 99Designs (awesome site, if you need a designer, check 'em out).  There is this designer that wins a lot of the competitions.  I stumbled across her while looking through a gallery.  The more that I realized that she was winning, the more I began to doubt my own skill.  I mean, my designs are better than hers!  My design aesthetic is better than hers!  AND I didn't even go to school for this!  How can she be so wack yet, win all these competitions and money!?!  

This is where the story picks up.

My friend said "Why are you hating"?  I looked at her like she said my mama was fat.  She repeated herself "Why are you hating"?  I replied that I wasn't hating and I asked her if she saw the same designs that I saw?  She said that she had noticed the lack of professionalism in some the lady's designs but, she didn't need to attack her to point that out.  I felt so defensive and frustrated!  I began explaining that I wasn't hating, I was critiquing.  But, the more I talked, the more I realized, I was hating.  There is a difference between "This bitch's designs are wack"!  and "She needs to select better typography and work on the composition of her designs".  I was hating.  I was spewing hate.  I wasn't trying to figure out what she was doing right, and what I was doing wrong.    I didn't even know this chick and I was hating on her like she was a sworn enemy of mine.

I do that shit a lot.

I'm going to stop it.  Here is how I'm going to do it.

1.  Identify the feelings that make me want to hate.  Is it jealously I'm feeling?  Anxiety?  Envy?

2.  Make a conscious decision to look within before searching for faults in others.

3.  Learn to appreciate the positive in folks.

4.  Abstain from hating ass activities with hating ass people.

5.  Admit that I have hater tendencies.

Routine

We all know the definition of insanity right?  Just as a refresher:  "The definition of insanity is doing the same things over and again and expecting different results".

This is profound.  Entirely and utterly basic. YET...uncomfortable and difficult to execute.

We're creatures of habit.  We like our routines.  Even when it seems like you have no routine.  At times, our routines can be our downfall.

Don't believe me?  Just watch...

**Girl meets boy.  Boy turns out to be a colossal  douche (as opposed to a giant one...big difference).  Girl sticks around because she loves him.  Boy keeps taking douche baggery to another level.  Girl says she's leaving.  Boy apologizes.  Girl takes him back.  Yeah...like I was saying...routine.

Here is another...one of my FAVES!

**Girl is upset because she's overweight.  Girl eats an entire pizza with a 2 liter of Diet Coke to make her feel better.  Girl sits online looking at all the chicks that she *feels* look better than her.  Girl is upset because she's overweight.  Girl eats seven tacos, a doughnut and drinks a Sprite Zer0.  

Uh huh...second verse, same as the first.

So, I've decided to employ that lovely quote up there to my life.  I think realizing what your routines are makes all the difference.  

Because...how can you break a cycle that you don't even know your in?

#MESSAGE

10 Things About Me...

I've been absent from this blog for so long that I wouldn't blame you if you didn't remember anything about me without flipping through a few posts.  So, as a way of reintroducing myself to you, I decided to do a 10 things about me post.

Check it.

1.  There's no place like home.  I love being home surrounded by my favorite things and my favorite people.  There is nothing wrong with a good show, a good book, a good project and a good day/night at the crib.  You won't find me out trying to rub elbows with the latest celebrities or out pop lock and dropping at the trendiest club.  My scene is three sides brick, 3,158 sq ft, raised ranch bliss.

2.  I don't eat meat.  I eliminated meat from my diet because my digestive system was in full rebellion against all foul, red meat and the like.  I am a pescatarian.  I eat lots of veggies and seafood.  It works for me.  I do miss oxtails and hot wings at times...I can't even lie.

3.  I write a song everyday.  Now, I can't play the piano or guitar so, I create a melody and write lyrics.  Singing is like breathing for me.  I can't *not* do it.  You know those stories about musicians and singers singing/performing in the mirror when they were growing up?  Well, that was me.  I never pursued music seriously due to self doubt and the doubt of others.  I'm going to change that!  It's never too late...right?

4.  I LOVE my hair but, I don't worship it.  I used to have locs down my back.  Then, I decided to cut them.  Folks have said some pretty fucked up stuff about me cutting my hair.  Insinuating that somehow I've diminished or lessened my beauty because I don't have long hair.  But, for me, my hair is an accessory.  I don't go for #TeamNatural and all that because we were all on the natural team when we arrived here and I don't feel the need to tootsie roll over that.  I love that we are loving our natural selves more and I am grateful for the exchange of knowledge but...I'm the antithesis of a natural hair nazi.

5.  I love all things creative.  Music, fine arts, graphic arts, crafting, and PAPER CRAFTING (check my other blog, Two Tears in my Bucket).  Other artists/designers inspire me.  I try to absorb and learn as much as I can.  Over time, my interests have evolved but, the one constant is art in some form.

6.  I'm just starting to figure out my personal style.  Right now, I'm just a beautiful, eclectic, eccentric hodge podge of fashion.  Luckily, I have my Good Judy, my Hannah, Neshanta of Style is She to help coach me.  For the most part, I like clothes that feel good and look good.  I'm a hipster at heart but, I also love a classic dress and blazer.

7.   I love food.  I love to cook.  I like kitchen gadgets.  I don't like to exercise however.  This presents a problem.  I'm working on it.  

8.  I am not a Christian.  I believe something God-like exists.  I'm not necessarily sure what that thing is.  I believe in religious freedom.  I believe that everyone should be able to believe, worship and live in way that adds value to their life.  I think the world could use a little more tolerance and a lot less judgement.

9.  I like to speak my truth as much as possible.  I wasn't always this way.  Therefore, I relish in being honest with everyone around me.  Truth is, I'm not comfortable with all my truths but, I'm facing this...I won't run.

10.  My husband and my son are my everything.  Were it not for them, I would literally, not be a tenth of who I am.  They are my beacons of light on my darkest days.  They are the glow of happiness that shrouds all my days.

So, there you have it.  10 super personal, super real things about me.