Movie Monday, or not.

Last week I said I would start a Movie Monday tradition and post a quick re-cap on all the movies we watched the previous week. My apologies, there was no time for a Movie Monday post due to our last-minute-hurry-up-were-goin-to-the-Tribe-game decision. Yep, we went to our first Tribe game of the season! It was completely last minute. We were out running errands and Rick has had the Tribe itch for weeks (he keeps saying, "allllllright, lets go to the big yard honey" - in that Pho voice we all know and love), so while listening to the radio, he kept dropping hints about blowing off our errands and get downtown to support the Tribe. So despite the massive Thunderstorm that was rolling in, we decided to rush home, grab the parkas, and go support the Tribe (rain or shine). Turns out there was an hour rain delay which complimented a pit-stop to Bar Cento for some Table Frites and a juice. Perfect.

Bleachers were sold out so we splurged on $44 tics and sat along the 3rd base-line. Long story short - we sat in the pouring rain (the parkas were a life-saver), Rick ate two Sugardales, we juiced, watched a group of boofs heckle the Red Sox left fielder and watched the Tribe beast out another W! It was a great game and the rain actually added to the fun.

I forgot how much fun the Tribe games are and with tickets starting at $8.00 - how can you pass it up?!

Table for Two: Lelolai

Good news. I mentioned here that Lelolai on 25th was closing and since we didn't see any "We're Moving Here" signs we were afraid they might be closing shop for good. But...I just received a notice that they are re-opening their cafe in the Old Arcade! All I know is it's coming soon and we'll still be able to get those nicen sandwiches!


Opening Soon
Old Arcade 401 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44114
216-771-9956

Porch Progress

When we started our house hunt, one of the items on our must-have list was a screened in porch. And since we moved in during the Fall we were only able to enjoy it for two short months, during which we did nothing in terms of decor. So...as soon as the weather started to turn we jumped on the opportunity to do a 1-2 and get functional & fancy (or "elegant" as our neighbors Patty & Charles have described it).

It turned out to be a full days work, starting with a massive scrub down. Hose and all.

Followed by the removal and addition of window hardware. There were a lot of these hooks so I diligently turned and twisted these suckers out while Rick hung our new outdoor curtain rods (which was NOT an easy task, a lot of m'effing and we definitely got into a little spat but that is the norm around here when hanging things).

Then the fun stuff. We started by hanging the street signs we bought in Ireland. Kinsale & Galway are two of the four towns we went to. The plan is to hang all four but we haven't located Dingle & Dublin since the move. Rick was pretty pumped about drilling into the brick with his new drill-bit.

A new rug.

An old plant hanger spray painted oil bronze - looks brand spankin new!

Some lanterns.

All the curtains hung.

The La Jolla - our very expensive still-feel-sick-about-it lounge love seat.

Our old iron side table.

And a few decorative pillows.

Progress!

And a sneak peak at the semi-final product:

We still have a lot to do. We are on the hunt for a two-top table & chairs (Paris bistro style, good luck!), change the drapes to the hook and ring style so they can glide easily along the rods, possibly add bamboo blinds along the side wall, plants (not sure if I want a pot or a hanging fern but we need something live out there), something to hang on the chimney, a mat by the door into the house, change out the light fixture and add a dimmer, twinkle lights?, coffee table of some sort to put our feet up on, repair small holes in screens, long term-paint the floor, and long term-hunt down the roll up panels that hang on the exterior for bad weather. I know, looooong list for a little room!

But for now, it works and like I said, we've had a lot of compliments from our neighbor ("best this porch has ever looked" - mind you, they have lived next door for 30+ years, "this looks so elegant", "looks like its right out of a catalog")  Of course I'm lovin that all the hard work went noticed. That night we were able to enjoy it too, the weather was gorgeous, we posted up with the ipad to watch a show with a couple drinks, snacks, the dog, and a breeze. Heaven.

Double Up, Double Up

It's show time folks. I'm starting a new GM blog tradition: Movie Mondays!!! Who doesn't need a little Movie action to start off the week? We have a saying, "Double Up, Double Up" (and no, it's not in reference to Double Cheeseburgers). It's what we chant say as we're walking out of the theatre after we just saw a show and then we decide to turn back around, walk right back in, and go to another. Double Up, Double Up. Two movies, back to back. Strange, I know.

We are definitely not Ebert & Roeper and what we like, may not be your fancy. But the one thing we do is see a wide variety. And, since getting our ipads and our online TV, we've been excessively "netflixing" & "blockbustering" everything (as anyone who uses netflix online knows, the Instant viewing options are as random as can be, so we've been watching a lot of things we might not normally). I actually watched a foreign sub-titled film the other night.

Anyways, don't worry, Movie Mondays will be short and sweet and we won't bother with too many details. And I'm sure there will be times as soon as you read the title, you'll shout - Seen It!

So here it goes, the first Movie Monday in no particular order (which is jam-packed since it rained all weekend in Cleveland).

Sleepers
How have I never seen this? Disturbing but GREAT flick. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend. The cast alone is worth it. Brad Pitt, Robert De Niro, Minnie Driver, Kevin Bacon, Dustin Hoffman and a slue of others.

Inside Job
Persuasive documentary about the 2008 collapse. It won an Oscar for best documentary but I actually fell asleep. I guess if you're in the dark on the ins and outs of what happened it would be worth seeing.

Bridesmaids
In theatres now and worth going to. I thought it was funny.

Justin Beiber Never Say Never
I had to beg Rick to rent this one. I can't help it, I'm a sucker for documentaries. This one is definitely not for everyone. I'd save it for the night you have to babysit your tween niece.

Full Metal Jacket
Although I had never seen this movie before, I could quote it (thanks to a song by 2LiveCrew). Rent it.

We Fancy: Fiskars Reel Mower

Sam, this one's for you! We have a friend (Sam), who I knew would make fun of me for this blog. And sure enough, just a few short days after sending out the link, it started. He left a vmail for Rick that sarcastically said, "can't wait to hear what you fancy this weekend". Zeroing in on the word "fancy".

Sam, it could be worse, we could say "We Heart" or "Our Favs" (I'd have to make fun of myself if that was the case).

Anyways, Sam is hilarious. H-i-l-a-r-i-o-u-s. Mind you, he calls the blog Growing UP Maplewood - not sure where he got the "up" part?

So, in the spirit of things "We Fancy" - Sam, this one is for you! And, it's a double whammy because it's green! You'll love it. (Side note, Sam thinks recycling is pointless and that global warming is a conspiracy).

We Fancy: Fiskars Reel Mower

Yes, they do still make push-mowers. And yes, we've had several neighbors stare, make comments, and even ask if we would like to borrow their gas mower. It's actually been kind of funny, we're wondering if they think we bought this because we couldn't afford a gas mower? Even my own family thought we were joking.

Although it is a lot more affordable, that wasn't why we bought a push-mower. I wanted to be green. I'm definitely not a green-freak or an expert but I do have fun trying. And it's also great exercise so we figured, what's the harm in trying? I know it's not for everyone but we love it and as long as we're able, we'll take on the extra effort.

Speaking of effort, we put an entire day of effort in the yard a couple weekends ago. Proof is in the pudding pictures. 4 bags full of grass...twigs...weeds...creepy dead lambs ears...

And the tools to prove we didn't hire a service. ;)

This pic below stinks but I wanted to show our progress. We still have a loooong way to go (hang the lanterns from the trees, plant more privacy trees along lounge area, save for dining furniture and more lounge furniture, new light fixture on front of garage, plant our garden, lay down more pebbles, get an outdoor trunk for storage & hide behind garage, start a compost, diy a coffee table & side table, add fence behind garage to keep Harley in, etc...) BUT progress is progress and if you live in Cleveland you'll know we haven't had many dry days so I think we're doin just fine so far. You'll see we finally found a sunny home for our Gronomics planters (read more here and here). Can't wait to start our garden later this month. AND...can you find our little pig dog Harley?

Yard work is always more fun while juicing so we had our fair share but an EXTRA big thanks to KD (our friends Mom) who dropped off homemade Ham & Bean soup. We definitely worked up an appetite and had zero energy left to make dinner so it worked out perfect to have her amazing (and healthy) soup. Thanks KD!

Sweets for Breakfast

Am I the only one that craves sweets first thing in the morning? If I could, I would eat a cupcake for breakfast. Don't judge. BUT, I've found a solution that is completely acceptable.

Lalo's Famous Cookies
Courtesy of Gwyneth Paltrow's Cookbook: My Father's Daughter (read more here)

As mentioned, we are cooking our way through this book. And after reading Gwyneth's description about these cookies, they had to be our first recipe:

"They are incredibly good for you - I even let my kids have them with breakfast - not a bad ingredient in the bunch." - GP

Cookies for breakfast, YES! If Gwyneth does it, why can't I? So I did. And...they were amazing. Even Rick (who always craves salty in the morning) gave into the morning sweets. They were extremely easy to make and they are about as guilt-free as you can get for a cookie.

You have to try these so I included the recipe below. Keep in mind, this makes about 50 cookies so you might want to cut in half, although - we just kept ours in the fridge and we're still eating them (a week later).



Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Lalo’s Famous Cookies (from My Father’s Daughter by Gwyneth Paltrow)

• 4 cups barley flour
• 3 cups raw whole almonds crushed in a food processor (about ten 2-second pulses)
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 cup real Vermont maple syrup (I used a local Ohio real syrup)
• Your favorite Jam (blueberry, raspberry, apricot) We used Raspberry

Combine all of the ingredients except for the jam in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. Form into tablespoonful balls and space them evenly on cookie sheets. Use your index finger, make an indent in each cookie. Fill each indent with a small spoonful of jam. Bake until cookies are evenly browned, about 20 minutes. Let cook before eating.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!!

I don't think it was a coincidence that I was born on Cinco de Mayo and my absolute favorite food is guacamole, not to mention I love margaritas. My mom also tells me that all she ate while she was pregnant was Mexican. It was meant to be. Yes, today is my birthday and I love that I was born on this patriotic celebrated Mexican holiday. And in the spirit of guac...I'm sharing my favorite Mexican restaurant in Cleveland: Momocho

For years Rick and I have complained about the lack of good Mexican food in Cleveland. But then we met the guacamole at Momocho. Every time we go, we love it more and more. They have a terrific Happy Hour (Tues - Friday 5:00 - 6:30) 1/2 off golden margaritas (which I can confirm are good, especially with the red salt), 1/2 off Tecate, and 1/2 off Taquitos (which is the best thing on the menu!).

I could go on and on but just go and try it for yourself (if you haven't already). My recommendation is to start with a juice, the traditional guacamole, and either split a taquito with someone or have your own. And then most importantly (I can't stress this enough) - get the Capirotada for desert. I'll let the before and after pictures do the talking on this one:

BEFORE

AFTER