stick around

Carol Brown / Flight of the Conchords

Sometimes Chad and I anticipate a late night out and since we got Bella that can be problematic because we don't have a backyard that she can get to on her own.  We have the incredible luxury of Chad's parents living close by, having a large yard, and friends for Bella to play with.  They also fortunately love Bella spending the night from time to time seeing as how Bella is so affectionate and is very good at wearing out her Uncle Champ - their labdrador who lets Bella boss him around.

Bella on the other hand LOVES spending the night at Chad's parent's house.  They have Uncle Champ, birdies, Pack Leader (Chad's dad), and KITTIES.  Bella is fascinated by Catfish their 21 year-old cat who is not afraid of Bella and takes every opportunity to let Bella know how unafraid of her he is... behind the gate.  Chad's mom has taken great pains to teach Bella how to behave around Catfish and Bella will do ANYTHING just to get a glimpse of Catfish, even if that means she must behave.

This past weekend we went to a soccer game out in Sandy and then had a couple of parties to visit after that so Bella spent the night.  The next morning when we went to retrieve her I could tell she REALLY wanted to have a conversation with me about all the things she saw while I was away.  Specifically that there are THREE kitties.  She had only ever seen Catfish before but that night the other two kitties made an appearance and so she stayed up all night watching them.

When we were finally able to tear her away from the gate she half passed out in the car and then made a beeline to the bedroom and wiggled under the covers.  She stayed there for several hours until I had to kick her out so I could do laundry.  She's so cute when she's grouchy.

Baked Macaroni & Cheese

Creamy Baked Fusilli, Cheese, & Sausage

Ingredients

• 2.5 cups uncooked bite size pasta (I like fusilli but any bite-sized pasta will do)
• 1 can (or ~10oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 TBS spicy mustard
• 1-3 Shakes of hot sauce
• 1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded gruyere cheese
• 1 sm onion, diced
• 1 cup skim milk
• 2 bratwurst sized sausages cut into bite sized pieces (I like Aidelle's)
• Bread Crumbs

Directions

1. Cook macaroni according to package instructions; drain.  In a large bowl, combine soup, milk, cheese, mustard, onion, and hot pepper sauce.  Fold in macaroni and sausage.
2. Spoon into a shallow baking dish.  Sprinkle bread crumbs over the top.
3. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Serves 6-8