Not Food: Moving Your Blog to Your Own Domain

In one of last week's Advice Smackdown posts, Amy answered Ashlea's question about some of the basics of blogging. As usual, Amy's advice was spot on, but she mentioned that she wasn't sure about moving a Blogspot blog to a registered domain. Ashlea was wondering specifically about this, so I left a comment offering to help walk her through the process.

During the last few days, Ashlea and I have exchanged a few emails and her blog has undergone a radical makeover--a makeover with which I did very little, if nothing, to help. Really--my assistance consisted mostly of "Don't worry!" and "You can do it!" and "Um, gosh, I'm not sure how to do that.." and "Look! Blogger sells domains!" Ashlea had settled into her own domain and redesigned her site faster than I could locate my own GoDaddy customer number.

I owned my own domain for about a year and a half before I realized that I could move my blog over without having to pay for hosting. In fact, Blogger provides the instructions for attaching your domain to your blog. The best part about the whole thing is that it is FREE. Well, registering your own domain will cost you, but after that, your blog will still be hosted on Blogger, even though it will appear on your own domain. (By the way, if you haven't registered your domain yet, read Amy's advice about paying for private registration. It really is important.)

My domains are all registered with GoDaddy, so these instructions are GoDaddy-specific. If you use another registrar, see this Blogger Help article for information specific to your registrar.

After you've already purchased your domain, you will need to go to your Dashboard--> Settings--> Publishing to tell Blogger that you're using your own domain. You'll just type your domain into the field next to "Your Domain."

Now, I’m too busy washing down my Cheez Whiz concoctions with green smoothies to reinvent the wheel, so the text that follows is all from Blogger. I have just inserted some screenshots to serve as visual “landmarks" to help you navigate through the process (hopefully) a little more easily.

GoDaddy.com

Log in to your account at www.godaddy.com.

Open the Domains tab and select My Domain Names. You'll be directed to the Domain Manager page.

Click the domain that you'd like to use with your blog.

Click the Total DNS Control And MX Records link at the bottom of the section entitled Total DNS.

Click Add New CNAME Record in the box labelled CNAMES (aliases). If you've already created a CNAME record for your blog's address, click the pencil icon next to the existing CNAME record.


For the Name, enter only the subdomain of the address you want to use for your blog. For example, if you picked www.mydomain.com as your address, enter www here.

Enter ghs.google.com as the Host Name. Specify a TTL or use the default setting of 1 hour.

Click OK, and then click OK again.

If you've never delved into the innards of your domain manager, it might seem a little overwhelming at first, but I assure you, it's not that difficult.

Believe me--if I can do it, anyone can do it.

Promises, Promises, and a Blueberry Parfait

I know I promised not-so-crunchy, but today is not the day that I deliver on that promise.

However, you should know that a jar of my beloved namesake sits upon the shelf of our fridge ready to lend its sodium-riddled cheezy goodness to a series of recipes that I will present to you soon. That's right, baby--Cheez Whiz!

After Monday's Spinach Smoothie craziness, I needed something to cleanse the palate, and the first in a series was born. I don't want to spoil the surprise, but I will say that it was good, y'all.

Since I'm trying to keep things light on the waistline and the budget around here, I've decided to milk my precious jar of Cheez Whiz for all that it is worth. I plan to get at least three, but hopefully four or five good dishes out of that sacred jar without compromising any of its store-bought cheezy goodness. Without that goal in mind, I would be far too tempted to plop down on the couch with the jar and a bag of tortilla chips and just call it a day.

So now that I've got us all hot and heavy for some corn chips and oh-so-processed cheeez, here's another fresh and healthy snack for you. This will provide two fruit servings, and third of a milk serving. You can hardly contain yourself, can you?

You will need:

One cup blueberries. I most often use frozen berries that I zap for a few seconds to thaw in the microwave, but I scored some fresh berries at a reasonable price last week. Fresh berries make this a lot more fun to present and photograph, by the way.

1/3 cup vanilla yogurt. I stopped buying vanilla yogurt once I realized that I could make my own with the sweetener of my choice. So now, I buy a container of plain nonfat yogurt and flavor it with a couple teaspoons of vanilla extract, a few shakes of cinnamon, and either sugar or xylitol to taste.

1/4 c Kashi GoLean Crunch Cereal. To be completely honest, good old fashioned granola would be better, but Kashi is very Points(tm) friendly (i.e. it has enough fiber to ensure victory in a gas war, if you know what I mean).

I don't usually get all fancy with my blueberries and yogurt--I usually just throw it all into a bowl and start chowing--but I thought I'd dress it up a little for you:

Estimated Nutritional Data* per serving, prepared with nonfat yogurt sweetened with sugar or Xylitol: 191 calories, 1g fat, 0mg cholesterol, 102mg sodium, 44g carbohydrates, 6g fiber, 31g sugars, 7g protein.


*Nutritional data derived from www.nutritiondata.com.

Spinach, anyone?

Oh, my word.

I just drank this, and it was really good.



Don't worry--I've got some recipes in the works that are a little less "crunchy."

Chicken Enchiladas

I love me some Mexican food. But I really love Tex-Mex. Did you know that there's a difference? I'll give you more details later on when I show you some of my favorite Mexican recipes, but all you really need to know is that Tex-Mex uses copious amounts of yellow cheese, and Mexican uses none. Man, I can mow through some cheddar. Surprisingly enough, I've managed to stay away from it pretty well lately, but every now and then, I'll get a serious craving for good old fashioned "rat cheese," usually as part of a Tex-Mex delicacy.

While these chicken enchiladas are not exactly cheesy, they've got that just-right cheddar/corn/tomato/spice combination that Tex-Mex is so beloved for. I used fat free cheddar in this version, but I'll admit that I'm not a big fan. It just so happened that I was in a bit of a POINTS™ crunch during the particular week that I made these, so I cut every calorie that I possibly could. I have made them with 2% cheese, and they were good enough to serve to company alongside a pot of beans and my favorite rice.

Quick 'n' Dirty Chicken Enchiladas (They're not really dirty--I just like to say "quick 'n' dirty.")

You'll need to shred 2 cups cooked chicken. The Mr. doesn't eat dark meat, so I usually boil a couple of breasts and call it a day. You can use whatever part of the chicken you want, and it really doesn't matter how you cook it--stew it, boil it, roast it, grill it--whatever works for you.

In a bowl, mix that with 1 cup jarred salsa. Again, just use whatever is the cheapest/in the fridge/your favorite.

Add to that 1/2 cup shredded cheese. Again, I used fat free for this round, but unless you really need to shave off those calories, go with 2% or better. That 4-cheese Mexican blend variety is fan-freaking-tastic.

Set that aside.

Now, you'll need 12 5-inch corn tortillas. Again, I'm all about versatility--you can use white corn or yellow corn tortillas. Doesn't really matter. You'll want to wrap the tortillas in a double layer of wet (not damp--wet) paper towels and microwave for 1 minute. Do that twice or more until the tortillas are pretty hot and very soft. If you don't warm them enough, they'll break when you try to roll the enchiladas. This won't effect the taste, though, so don't be too bummed if you end up with some broken tortillas. It happens to the best of us.

Spoon 1-2 tablespoons of the chicken mixture into each hot tortilla and roll the tortilla up. Place the enchiladas seam-down in a 13 x 9 casserole dish. Oh, wait--you need to spray the pan with non-stick cooking spray first. Sorry about that.

Now, in another bowl mix together one can of red enchilada sauce and one can of green enchilada sauce. And guess what? Use any brand you like. I'm telling you, I'm nothing if not flexible. Pour the combined sauces over your rolled enchiladas and sprinkle with another 1/2 cup grated cheese.

Bake at 350° F until melty and bubbly.

So to recap, here are your ingredients:

• 2 c shredded cooked chicken
• 1 c jarred salsa
• 1 c shredded cheddar cheese, divided (fat free, 2%, full-fat, whichever suits your tastes and needs)
• 12 5-inch corn tortillas (fewer if you use larger tortillas)
• 1 can red enchilada sauce
• 1 can green enchilada sauce
• non-stick cooking spray
  

And here's the final product:

Estimated Nutritional Data* per enchilada, prepared with fat-free cheese:
99 calories, 1g fat, 12mg cholesterol, 311mg sodium, 13g carbohydrates, 2g fiber, 3g sugars, 9g protein.


*Nutritional data derived from www.nutritiondata.com.

Weight Watchers Update

This will be quick, because I'm headed to Goodwill to donate some clothes. I'm only taking two boxes, but these two boxes are monumental for me. They are filled with clothing--pants, mostly--that are too droopy around my waist and hips and even my ghetto booty to comfortably wear anymore. They are the "in-between" clothes. I never realized how much I hated them until I began trying them on, one by one, and then tossing them into the "see ya!" pile.

I've lost a total of 9.2 pounds so far on Weight Watchers. I'll go ahead and say it: Weight Watchers rocks. It hasn't been easy, but it's not been all that difficult, either. I've still got another good 10 pounds to lose, but for the first time in a long time, I'm proud of the way my body looks and feels.

Finally, after three years, every item in my closet fits. Everything zips, buttons, and snaps without having to lie down or inhale dangerously. Never mind that I'd need to wear some super-heavy-duty Spanx in order to willingly leave the house wearing a couple of pieces. If it zips, it fits.

Ahhh, Produce

Fresh fruits and veggies--who doesn't love them, right? Thing is, they can they be ridiculously expensive. Even in the height of berry season (which is supposed to be, um, now), purchasing a quart of strawberries or blueberries will blow the whole grocery budget. Fortunately, there are some fresh produce deals out there (hello, yellow squash), and to make in-season produce shopping even easier, WiseBread ran a great month-by-month list of in-season produce last week.

Also, I recently discovered something verrrry interesting: On a trip to our local warehouse club, I found that they sell in-season produce for roughly half the mainstream grocers' price! I bought a pound each of strawberries and blueberries last week at a fairly reasonable price. I'm not sure if this is a nation-wide warehouse club phenomenon, but it definitely made my trip worthwhile.

Sure, ideally, I would be doing all of my produce shopping at the local farmer's markets, but ours down here are usually picked over by 9am, and I'm just too darned lazy to roll out of bed and get the kid and myself dressed and ready to navigate the farmer's market during prime time. And the u-pick-em places? Eh, again, I'm a wimp.

Any other tips or dirty secrets for scoring good (and cheap) fresh produce? I mean, besides jumping the neighbor's fence and stealing his watermelons, of course. Any region-specific advantages or challenges? Anyone else more than a little peeved that eating a variety of fresh and healthful foods seems to have become a luxury?

Alas, our summer backyard growing season seems to have peaked and is now on the wane. There's not much that isn't sad and wilty in our 100+ degree temps, so I'm just trying to keep the plants alive until they catch their second wind in the cooler autumn months. At least that's what I'm hoping for.

Strawberry-Banana Shake

When I was pregnant with Al (See? I told you there'd be more than just food. Heh.), I asked for and received a Magic Bullet for Christmas. I had grand intentions of pureeing Al's baby food, just like the overachieving hippie mom I knew I'd be. Turns out, I should have just asked for shares in Gerber stock because that Magic Bullet collected dust for many, many months.

That is, until I realized that some jarred baby food is just gross. Especially bananas. Have you ever tasted jarred bananas? They're tangy. Whoever heard of tangy bananas? Tangy bananas are just bad and wrong. Alex thought so, anyway. Even though he would devour bucketloads of mashed fresh bananas, he wouldn't touch the jarred stuff.

Around that same time, I read a tip for freezing fruit and veggie purees in ice cube trays. I just happened to have a bunch of bananas that were rapidly browning before my eyes. Instead of mashing them by hand, I dusted off the ol' Bullet and got to whirring those babies up. In no time at all, I had a good stash of frozen banana cubes in a container in the freezer, which I could thaw in the microwave in a matter of seconds to mix with cereal or to feed directly to the babe.

And guess what? I still make banana cubes all the time. They're perfect for cooling and sweetening hot oatmeal, and they are a crucial ingredient in one of my favorite new near-daily treats--my Strawberry-Banana Shake. It's cool, it's fruity, and it provides a full dairy serving and a full fruit/veggie serving, for anyone who's counting.

Ingredients:

• One cup skim milk. You can use cow's milk or soy milk or rice milk or almond milk. You can use skim, 2%, whole, whatever. It depends on your taste and your needs.
• 6-8 frozen strawberries. You know those gorgeous fresh berries that are available right now? Don't you dare use those here. You eat those babies all on their own. This recipe will not do their fresh deliciousness justice. Go ahead, use the cheap frozen ones here.
• 2 frozen banana cubes. I'm not sure why, but without the banana cubes, this shake turns out runny. There's something about the frozen bananas that thicken it up beautifully. Maybe one of you scientific types out there can explain this to the rest of us.
• 1 teaspoon vanilla.
• 1 teaspoon sweetener of your choice. My choice is Xylitol. My next choice is cane sugar. I try to avoid all the artificial ones. They scare me.
  

Blend it all together until smooth. Now, here's where my Magic Bullet has really come in handy. A regular blender will work perfectly, but with the Magic Bullet, I can just blend this up in the glass that I'll be drinking it from.

See?

Estimated Nutritional Data* per serving, prepared with skim cow's milk and NO sweetener:
155 calories, 0g fat, 5mg cholesterol, 105mg sodium, 31g carbohydrates, 3g fiber, 22g sugars, 9g protein.

1 teaspoon of granulated cane sugar will provide an additional 15 calories, 4g carbohydrates, 4g sugars.


*All nutritional data derived from www.nutritiondata.com.

Here's the Story, Morning Glory

Alrighty. Here's the deal: For months now, I've felt somewhat uninspired to write. I have to have a purpose, a motivation for writing, and I've had trouble finding that lately. Like, dude, what's it all for, maaaahn?

This summer has given me time to think about what exactly I'm doing here. Here, as in here in the blogosphere, not here as in here on Earth, because I am not nearly philosophical enough (or rested enough) to ponder that one these days. Isabel mentioned not long ago that she wanted her site to be somehow helpful to others. I can relate to that. I don't want to just sit here and give you a laundry list of Things I Did Today and Tricks My Toddler Can Do. It's just not me anymore.

But I can't quit you, Internet. I just had to figure out where exactly you fit into my life. I realized that I need to write about that which I know, love, and spend most of my waking hours thinking about. And that is food.

Now, hold on, before you start thinking, "Greeeeaaat, another food blog...now where's the delete button on my subscriptions list?" hear me out. It won't be All Food All the Time. Just mostly food. Healthy food. Healthy food that I'm currently eating and trying out on my family. Healthy food that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. There will also be stories about how we're trying to live a more simple and frugal life. And about how I'm going to try and make this whole thing fun.

It sounds absolutely riveting, doesn't it?


But it's what I'm feeling, so I hope you'll hang with me.

Alas, there will be no cake as long as I'm a slave to the Points, but I bet we'll find a suitable substitute.

Little Changes

First of all, Alex says "thank you" for your comments about bath routines. He is pleased as punch that he will be skipping bathtime tonight, since the most strenuous activities he took part in today were spectating (and commentating) PS3 gaming and eating ice cream cake for dinner. I figure I'll just swipe at his face with a baby wipe, brush his teeth, and call it a day.

(With that paragraph alone, I am a shoe-in for Parent of the Year, no?)

Perhaps you noticed the new header. A few other things will be changing soon, mainly the focus of the content here. I've been feeling a little wonky and unfocused about writing lately, and I'm hoping that this change will inspire me.

We'll see.

Mmm, watermelon. Now that's inspiring.

A Word from Alex

Hey, Al here. My mom's been kind of busy these days painting bathrooms and cleaning closets and thinking about what she wants to be when she grows up and stuff. So she hasn't been writing here as much as I think she'd like to. Or maybe she's thinking about doing something different here on this site. I don't know. Between you and me, I don't think she knows either.

Anyway, I was wondering something: I've heard rumors 'round these parts that not all kids get baths every day. For reals? I mean, are there some of you moms and pops out there that understand that dirt under fingernails and toenails and beads of dried sweat and dirt around a kid's neck are really no big deal?

'Cause maybe you can tell my mom that I don't need to take a bath everyday. I don't like baths.

'K, thanks.

Happy Independence

I'm usually not a super-patriotic type, partly because my first husband was a Desert Storm vet, and his extreme flag-waving, cliché-spouting patriotism--exhibited from the recliner while smoking weed in his underwear, natch*--kind of turned me off to the whole thing.

That's not to say that I don't love my country. I do. Fervently.

And most of all, I love my freedom. Freedom to live as I please, say what I please, and worship as I please (or don't please, depending on the week).

Happy Independence Day. May you spend today enjoying your favorite freedoms.




*I do realize that most soldiers are not lazy potheads. And I thank goodness for that.

Alex and the Giant Squash

I realize that it may not be edible when we finally pick it, but we're leaving this baby on the vine just to see how big it will grow.