Kitty Deschanel | Food, Wine, and Travel Adventures Across the USA

I bought my DSLR camera today! Read on if you're in the market for a new DSLR. Heck, read on even if you're not! Thanks so much to all of you who offered advice toward the decision. In the end, I went with the Canon EOS Rebel T1i because of its great reviews, video capabilities, and dirt cheap price. How cheap, you ask? Well, Sexy Nerd's uncle isn't posting on Facebook to call me Sweet Talker for nothing. Wait...that sounds kinda weird. Scratch that last part and take a guess on how much I paid. Go on. $600? $500? $379.99, baby! I checked Target.com last night (as mentioned in this post ) and discovered that only one store in the Albuquerque area was still stocking the T1i. I called and was told that there was one in stock plus the floor model, both priced on clearance for $549.99. I asked if the floor model could be discounted further, but was told no. The girl on the phone did say that it would probably be marked 10% less after selling the last camera, if they ha...

*This post was written last night and updated this morning. See #4. 1. The word Sexy Nerd was referring to in his recent, ridiculous Quote of the Day was flexitarian. Oh! Sadly, it took me over a week to think of this. 2. I've researched and researched and have my heart set on the Canon EOS Rebel T1i. It's on sale at Target right this very moment. I called all 6 stores in our area (okay, so Santa Fe and Rio Rancho are not technically our area, though Target.com says otherwise) and there is only ONE left anywhere. Why aren't I on my way this instant? In my pre-Sexy Nerd days, I wouldn't have thought twice about going out at 9pm. The store is open for almost another whole hour! He's such a worrier. He doesn't even think I should try to go before work tomorrow because I might get stuck in traffic and be late. Sheesh! 3. I'm going to go before work anyway. Think positive thoughts for me and my fellow Albuquerque drivers (an ideal thought would be that th...

Pica is a very special girl. She loves to fluff and paw at her bedding until it's exactly the way she wants, even to the point of ripping the fabric. It turns out that Pica can't be trusted to have a blanket in her bed. Take a look: Hmmm, maybe this is funny and maybe not. On one hand, had I not come downstairs, she could very easily have strangled herself to death. On the other hand, she looks like Superdog. Well, Superdog's special cousin, at least. Want another Pica post? How about Dogs Wearing Earmuffs ?

Welcome to another Not "Baaad" Sundays with LambAround Linky Party! I know what you're thinking. There are already a zillion blog hops out there, Lamb! What makes yours so special? I'll tell you what makes mine special. 3 things! 1. This Linky is open to all posts that you are proud of. Did you recently post about a great decorating project, craft, or recipe? That's wonderful if you did, but just fine if you didn't. I just want you to link to a post or posts you are proud of. 2. Do you ever find yourself trying not to duplicate posts on blog hops but aren't quite sure what you posted the previous weeks? Problem solved! The Linky from today will be back, making it easy to see what you've already posted and giving you another chance to visit any great posts you may have missed! 3. The most exciting difference of all! You're not just linking up with your fellow bloggers - you're competing against them!  Participating in the Not "Baaa...

The Pioneer Woman became an online sensation with a post teaching the world how to properly cook a steak. Tonight, I heard laughter coming from the backyard, near our barbecue grill. The steak was flat when Sexy Nerd placed it on the grill. Kinda looks like a viking ship. Or a pigeon!   In Sexy Nerd's defense, the odds of having a dry steak go way down when it can hold its own marinade. Apparently, Sexy Nerd has never read The Pioneer Woman's blog.

Suzy, you've achieved your bragging rights: Way to go, Suzy's Artsy Craftsy Sitcom ! LambAround readers, you're going to love Susy's site. For all you crafty, and especially you craftsy, types, you even get the opportunity to be featured. On Suzy's Artsy Craftsy Sitcom, you'll find posts like this: Surely , you're thinking, that beautiful peacock design is not a doodle. Actually, yes, it is! Is this the most gorgeous letter H you've ever seen? It's quilled and Suzy teaches in detail how to make your own! Thanks to everyone who took the time to vote for this week's winner! Be sure to swing by for another Not "Baaad" Sundays blog hop this weekend (and another chance to win the Best in Show award!)

Ronzoni pasta is on sale for only 49 cents a box at Smith's until Wednesday. 49 CENTS! Add in coupons and you can even get the pasta for free! I embarrassed Sexy Nerd by piling 20 boxes into our cart. The cashier agreed with me that it was quite a deal. Sexy Nerd says she had to agree, as she was in charge of selling the product and was secretly thinking that I was a sucker, but I'm confident that she had also taken the opportunity to stock up. Not really that many. These are stacked 3 deep against the pantry wall. I had been shooshed out of the pasta aisle by Sexy Nerd. That night, I couldn't get the Ronzoni pasta deal out of my head. 49 cents! On my way to work the next day, I stopped by Smith's again. Junk in the trunk. Just a few more boxes? Another twenty boxes! To be fair, if we eat a box a week, this won't even last a year. Hmmmm...I wonder if I should go back for more... I got home before Sexy Nerd and decided to pu...

I have the day off and have spent the afternoon browsing through reviews, comparisons, and videos of digital SLR cameras. I'd intended to just take a quick look online, but my search began hours ago. Frankly, there is too much information available! Just when I think I've found exactly what I want, another camera is casually mentioned on a site and it restarts my search at step 1. I'm thrifty, so I'm hoping to find a DSLR for approximately $500 or so, lens included. Refurbished is fine. I'd love for it to take decent videos. Right now, my top choice is the Canon EOS Rebel T1i Digital SLR Camera with Canon EF-S 18-55mm IS lens. Yes, of course I cut and pasted that. Geez, the names alone are complicated. No wonder my head hurts! My question and purpose of this post, my bloggy friends, is to ask your opinion. Has anyone else used this camera? Which digital SLR camera would you buy? Now, to go eat a late lunch, or start making dinner. And I should probably change o...

Preparing dinner the other night, Sexy Nerd told me he'd heard about a group of people who aren't quite vegetarians, but they only eat meat in moderation. To me, this is known as a healthy diet. He continued, trying to think of what these people are called. He remembered. "They're called transformitarians ." That quesadilla is mostly veggies and cheese, but it also contains a little bacon. Sexy Nerd must be a transformitarian. Update: The word he was looking for was flexitarian . D'oh!

I just found this coupon and I'm so excited that I wanted to share it ASAP! If you have a Visa card that says "Visa Signature", you can use it to save 15% on Southwest flights: https://usa.visa.com/signaturesouthwest/index.jsp . Worried that this might be a scam, I was extra cautious using the link, but my Camp Blogaway airfare is booked and I did receive a 15% discount. Sooo happy, especially since I was about to book the exact same flights for the full price! Factor in my fabulous Calphalon find , and I'm on a good deals roll this week :) Oh, and if you're wondering, I did take an Ambien after registering for Camp Blogaway but was so worked up that I still did not sleep a wink! Okay, back to business as usual: The linky for the Best in Show award is up and running on the right sidebar. Not nominated and want a chance to win the award for yourself? Link up! Rules for the Not "Baaad" Sundays blog hop can be found here and my Not "Baaad"...

Allow me to introduce you to this week's nominees for the Best in Show award: A Law Student's Journey created this charming lamp. I saw something similar at Anthropologie recently for well over $100!   Mrs Happy Homemaker posted these Make Ahead Loaded Mashed Potatoes. Don't they look scrumptious? Suzy's Artsy Craftsy Sitcom linked up to her fascinating Ukrainian egg tutorial. Sun Scholars is ready for Easter! I've bought Peeps specifically to make this recipe. Iit's the first time I've ever bought holiday candy before it hits the clearance aisle! Musings by Lindsey has a simple How To for making a variety of silhouette artwork. Sun Hats & Wellie Boots made Ice Cream Cone Cakes! And, yes, they cooked perfectly. Congratulations, nominees! Now the real fun begins. The poll for the Best in Show award is located toward the top of the right sidebar and will run until approximately Tuesday. To help you bring in votes, here is a snazzy (yes, snazz...

I've been putting this off since I first posted about it , continually waffling back and forth about whether or not I should attend Camp Blogaway. I finally just sat down and signed up. Oh my goodness. Did I really just sign up for camp? Am I really going to fly to California on my own? Am I really going to camp with a group of people I've never met before? Really?? I'm too excited to sleep! Excited and a bit terrified. There's so much to do! Blog camp is all about networking, right? I figure I should have some LambAround business cards made up. That alone seems so boring though. What else can I do? Airfare! I need to book my airfare! Geez, what have I gotten myself into? My palms are actually sweaty right now. This is going to be fun. Right? Alrighty, I'd better quit rambling and wrap this up (and perhaps go take an Ambien). One of my bloggy pet peeves is posts without photos, so here is a post from last week that received only one (ONE!) comment. It's a ...

I'm going to begin today's post with a link: http://www.amazon.com/Calphalon-Contemporary-Stainless-8-Quart-Stockpot/dp/B0007D6FL8/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top Lamb , you're thinking, why did you just have me open a link for a $150 stockpot?That's an insane price for a stockpot and I don't even care that it's Calphalon Contemporary! I agree with you 100%. Out of concern for our health, (some may argue that it's out of sheer paranoia) Sexy Nerd and I have been wanting to replace our Teflon pans (they kill pet birds!) for quite some time. We wanted a quality set, but are super cheap thrifty. Allow me to introduce you to our new set of Calphalon Contemporary pans: Yes, I know what you're thinking (or quite possibly yelling out loud). $499 for a stupid set of pans? Are you crazy?! Well, we are crazy, but in this case we're simply lucky ducks. We stopped by Bed Bath and Beyond the other day and found these pans on the clearance rack, marked down t...

It's time for a haircut. My mom gave me a gift certificate to go see Bridget at Salon Phoenix, who did my hair last time , and this seems like an ideal opportunity for a major change. I usually just get my hair trimmed whenever a $4.99 Great Clips coupon arrives in the mail. I hate to go to a *real* hair salon and not go all out. So, what should I have done? I'm leaning toward those long, thick Katy Perry/Zoey Deschanel bangs. My hair grows quickly though, so the maintenance might just drive me crazy. What should I do? My bloggy friends, the decision is in your hands*! This is how my hair looks right now, only a bit longer. Yes, I'm rocking a Halloween vest! *Unless you make a terrible decision. Sorry, there will be no purple streaks for me.

It's that time of year again! The juniper has taken hold of our Albuquerque air and it seems like everyone is sneezing and scratching at their red, puffy eyes, myself included. My coworkers have been calling in sick, but I think their colds are really misdiagnosed allergies. Uggh, my head is pounding and my nose is driving me crazy! This time next year, I'm taking a cruise. Don't let me forget! It's 7pm. I think I'll go to bed. Here are last year's funny (IMHO) allergy posts, combined for extra awesomeness (also known as the lazy way of blogging, which confirms me yelling "I surrender!" to my allergies and to the universe). Enjoy! You know how I know that these allergies are getting the better of me? I had a conversation with Pica and Biscuit this morning. It went a little something like this: "Uuuuuuuugh! My throat is so sore that I'm losing my voice! I can barely talk! How am I going to work all day if I can't talk?" And, of...

Your many votes have been tallied! The Best in Show Award this week is going to a blogger whose posts I always enjoy, and who happens to have the world's cutest blog header: I can't stop myself from smiling every time I see this. Way to go, Becky from Rub Some Dirt On It ! With over 55% of the votes in your favor, you deserve a round of applause. I hope my readers will stop by with their congratulations, especially because I'm sure they'll be delighted by posts like this: Walking on Water   A post about an ice fishing excursion, described exactly as I would expect if I'd been dragged along: "It was cold and slushy and boring." Becky, you're my kinda people! Here is your award: Now, let's link up!

I didn't sleep at all last night (courtesy of the awesomeness that is idiopathic insomnia ) and I'm scrambling to get ready for work, (none of my clothes look good today) where I know I'm going to be painfully shorthanded, just like I have been all week. Ugh, how can you wake up on the wrong side of the bed when you didn't even get to wake up? And what does this have to do with the Blog Hop? (Nothing at all, of course!) I've been wondering if the weekend is the best time for the Not "Baaad" linky party. Let's try it a little early today and see what happens. If this is your first time participating, you can read the rules here . I'd love for you to post my button, which is on the right sidebar. Have fun, my bloggy friends! I promise I'll try to return in a less grouchy mood! Just blogging has set me in the right direction. Click here to join the party!

I'd like to start out with a great, big THANK YOU to all my wonderful bloggy friends who come by to link up to the Not "Baaad" Sundays blog hop every week (and an even bigger THANK YOU to those of you who come to link up and to read my posts during the week!) My favorite part of the Not "Baaad" blog hop is finding new blogs. Just look at all the amazing Best in Show Award nominees this week: Vintage Skye Meals for Real Rub Some Dirt On It Ladybird Ln the crafty cpa This Chick Cooks The Inspired Housewife Sweetened by: Kagi Creative Mommas We have quite the yummy/cute/fun/inspirational bunch of bloggers this week! Congratulations to everyone who was nominated. The real fun starts now - voting! You'll find the poll inside the upper right sidebar. Yes, you can vote for yourself. The winner of the customized and highly coveted Best in Show Award will be announced in less than a week! Need a little assis...