Pioneer Woman Pot Roast & Mashed Potatoes - A must try!

Right now, I am intoxicated with the smells of herbs and onions in my pot roast... I have the  recipe book, "Pioneer Woman Cooks" 
I decided to give the pot roast a try because I have been craving beef lately. I was so delighted to see how simple this recipe is (hyperlink below) http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/09/2008_the_year_of_the_pot_roast/ 
this is my first main course dish I have attempted. I have Rachel Ray's hard anodized pots and pans but I really think my pitch for stainless steel pieces from her collection may have to revisit the table... (wicked grin inserted here)

Anyway - Here's what I did step by step

3 tablespoons olive oil

peeled onion and carrots, cut onion into halves, carrots onto quarters

Seasoned chuck roast with salt and fresh ground pepper

Dump carrots into hot skillet and lightly brown. Remove carrots from skillet and place in a small bowl.

Repeat same step with onions

 Starting to smell really good right about here...

After removing onions, add another tablespoon of olive oil to skillet and allow skillet to get really hot, add chuck roast and sear on all sides 
(2 mins should be plenty on each side)

yumm!

Remove chuck roast and let rest on a plate. Add beef stock to skillet and let the renderings from the veggies and roast become friends.

Add veggies and chuck roast back to the skillet

Place Rosemary and Thyme in skillet, tuck into little areas around the roast, distribute herbs evenly.

Place in oven at 275 degrees, my roast was 5lbs, so I let it cook 4 hours

Here is the roast right out of the oven... Yummmmmmm!

While this was my first time making the pot roast, I have made these potatoes a million times, I even made enough to feed 200 for the office Christmas Party at my work last year.


Dinner is served

I hope you give this simple and delicious recipe a try, have a great weekend!

Going Where I've Never Gone Before - Finished Desk

I worked on my desk as the weather would permit throughout this past week - Winds like California has not had in over a century hit us these past two weeks and I was determined it wouldn't slow me down. Lets take a look back a my desk -

Before and after in a few simple steps listed below...

Since the desk was in pretty decent shape, I used a coarse sanding strip then followed with a fine strip to smooth out the desk top and face of the drawers. For the tough to reach areas, I used my sanding block (a great $2.27  investment for simple projects such as these)

I ran in the backyard for this shot just before the winds picked up for the evening, I barely remembered to get a shot of the primer. I used the Glidden brand Gripper Primer in Grey. I love this primer soo much!

If you notice the patio furniture looks awful close together, that's because it has been relocated since the high winds to battle against the strength of the gusts. One morning, the entire set was strewn about the backyard and those pieces aren't lightweight. 

I finally gave in to the weather (sort of) and decided that I would work on the drawers inside, I couldn't bear the cold any longer. This is the first (and very light might I add) coat of black paint on the drawers. I always do at least two coats of paint, seeing how rich the black is already made me very happy.

I used a basic Black paint, I purchased a quart of Color Place brand paint from Walmart for the desk. I figure, black is black... I hope I am right. I am debating painting the inside of the drawers...


In the process of painting the first coat, I discovered... I will need three coats on my desk

The weather only got worse after this picture, so I finished the desk in the family room... The rain caught me off guard.


Here is my finished sewing desk

I applied three coats of black paint to the desk and drawers and two light coats of gold spray paint to the pulls. I really like the way the desk turned out.

Overall, the desk was a real joy to update and a steal compared to prices out there for a desk similar to this:


Desk: 30.00
Primer: 0.00
Paint: 10.30
Spray Paint: 3.47
Pulls: 0.00
all bushes, sanding blocks and sponges were from my stash
total: 43.77

DIY Bulb Wreath~ Bigger Project Than I Thought!

I decided I would make a bulb wreath creation like this...

directions and image found on goodhousekeeping.com

Christmas Ball Wreath

A shimmery stunner takes Christmas ornaments off the tree and onto the wall. Buy a straw wreath about 22 inches in diameter from the crafts store. Using 1/2 yard of white felt cut into 3-inch-wide strips, wrap each piece around the wreath, pinning to secure and overlapping the edges. Take assorted Christmas balls and attach to the felt with a low-temperature glue gun, using the smallest balls to fill in holes and gaps. This is also a great way to use older ornaments that may not look good from all angles. You can also add small stars, snowflakes, or other ornaments to give your wreath a unique look. Hang with wire, wrapped securely around "top" of wreath. (Note: You'll need to add the wire before you cover the wreath completely with ornaments.)

Here's where things get a little lost in translation for me (I forgot to take pictures with my camera, however I have TONS on my blackberry...)

Therefore - (Step One and Two) 

I used am 18 inch straw wreath and thank goodness I did, this turned into a really large wreath. I wrapped the wreath in some old fabric I had around the house in my usual go-to shade of natural. I did not use any pins, I simply hot glued the overlapping strips when I started a new piece.

Here is the wreath before I created the ribbon addition to hang it with, I wound up purchasing over 130 bulbs, I used all but 12 so this 18 inch wreath has 118 bulbs on it!!!
I absolutely LOVE this wreath, it was worth the trip back to Walmart to get the bulbs, I will say that I would suggest the re-use option with old ornaments you may have, and while I have some (somewhere) I decided on doing something different this year, which was nice because it's my first time using these colors.

I have not even finished my holiday decor (I am a little late, I know) but I wanted to see what the wreath looked like on the wall so I took down the pendulum clock in the formal living room to satisfy my curiosity, I still have a little more decor to add to to the formal living and dining area but here is a picture of the wreath on the wall.

I plan to add some ornaments to the brick work on the fireplace (it's too small to call a mantle) and maybe I will jazz it up with some gold or silver beads. I also plan to make little hanging ornament decor for the short railing I have on the staircase. I figure a few candles here and there will also help to make the room special. I asked my husband for a flocked white tree, I haven't had one since I was a teenager so that will be special. 

Overall, I am very pleased with the wreath, I have already decided on what next years wreath project will be, I have to get lots and lots of turquoise bulbs after Christmas.

Out of the Mouth of My Babe

Happy Friday Everyone!

I will share with you a little bit of wisdom I heard from my 12 year old daughter Jai on the way home from school -

Jai: Mommie - You know what we learned today in chapel?

Me: No baby girl, what did you learn?

Jai: We learned that you are not to worry about anything because you are a child of God. God takes care of the smallest birds and animals in the wilderness, so he will take care of you! God doesn't want you to worry about bills, or money, or anything, because he will take care of your needs, He wants us to give Him our best love and you cannot do that without faith.  Just trust God Mommie, and stop worrying so much. If God can make sure a little bird can eat, and people don't feed every bird every where, he will take care of what you need because he cares for you.

Me: Thank you Jai - Mommie really needed to hear that! (Choking back tears)

Jai: You're welcome Mommie, everything will be okay, you will see.

So I am going to work on doing just what Jai said, sometimes it's hard to remember the principals of the bible, life gets to be soo overwhelming and seems too much to bear.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding  Proverbs 3:5

Have a Blessed Friday and Weekend!