I reveal my inner 15-year old

Yes, yes, she's always lurking close to the surface, I'm afraid :) In this instance, she's over the moon-- no pun intended-- about the fact that Eclipse is only 8 days away from being in the bookstores! Eclipse is book three in the ongoing series by Stephenie Meyer, authoress extraordinaire, about Bella and Edward, mortal and vampire.

Stop. I know what you're thinking (oh, and cut out the eye-rolling while you're at it!).

These books are so much fun! Dark, yes, and a teensy bit melodramatic, but such a good read. I've always liked vampire books, but never cared for Anne Rice or that woman who writes the Anita Blake series. Well, ok, I did like the Anita Blake books at first, but eventually they devolved into endless rounds of meaningless sex and bloodbaths-- ick. The Twilight Series (named for the first book) is different, and oh, so enjoyable. You can read more about Twilight and see an interview with Stephenie Meyer about Eclipse here.

My inner 15-year old is now through speaking :)

In other news, I came back home today after a fun few days with my parents. I was very glad to see Chris and the menagerie, as you might well imagine. To celebrate the rain (and, ok, because there was very little food in the house!), I made a pot of my friend Cindy's lentil soup. Here's the recipe, modified a bit to suit my mood and the lack of certain ingredients:

Ingredients

• 2 small or 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cups lentils (I used 1 cup yellow, and 1 cup orange, but whatever)
• 2 palm-sized potatoes, cooked
• 1 large carrot, or half a bag baby carrots, grated
• several fresh basil leaves-- if you don't like basil, leave it out; if you love it, use a lot ;)
• 4 medium, fresh tomatoes (I substituted these for 2 cups of tomato juice)
• salt to taste

Directions

• Fill a good-sized cooking pot 3/4 of the way full, and add the lentils. Cook for about an hour and 15 minutes, or until they're done
• Chop your potatoes into cubes, and set them to boiling. Reduce heat to low/medium and cook until done, but not mushy
• Grate the carrots and set aside
• Chop the tomatoes and set aside
• Chop and saute the onions in olive oil until they're translucent, and set aside
• When the lentils are done, add the tomatoes and carrots and let them cook for a bit
• Add the potatoes, onions, and basil and bring the soup to boiling. Let it boil for about 3 minutes, and reduce heat to low.
• Dish up the soup, and add grated cheese (I used shaved parmesan)
• Enjoy!

I also hung the cord cover on the dining room chandelier and it looks fabulous, if I do say so myself ;) Chris really likes it, too, and confessed that he's never liked that naked cord, lol. At first I thought that I had overestimated and only needed one of the covers, but it turns out that there was plenty of room for both and that having two instead of one made it extra ruffledy. Huzzah, so nice when a plan comes together! I'm also feeling quite smug that it looks nicer (in my humble opinion) than the ones I found selling on the Internet for $39.99.

Tomorrow I'm off to Home Depot for "Provence blue" paint for the fence project. I had an idea for the gate opposite it, and it involves using different shades of yellow that I already have so at least I'm saving some money there. Hopefully I'll get the fence done, and the newly painted plant holders hung there.

My time at home is rapidly running out :( Soon I'll be back at work, and while I really enjoy it, having time to let my domestic diva rule is soooo much fun!

What's your domestic diva up to?
Kimberley