The second post of Christmas

As I was showing you yesterday, most blogs I follow I read as feeds. But there are some blogs that I like to keep up with but don't need to know the minute they post. They are the ones where if I have an extra minute or two I might check in to see what is new but since they are strangers to me I don't feel compelled to know things in real time.

1. The Pioneer Woman and The Pioneer Woman Cooks -- This is the kind of blog I want to have. She posts about all sorts of random things. She likes photography and shares lots of neat little photoshop tricks. She tells about life on a working cattle ranch. She tells about life with 4 kids. I can relate. But the really fun part of her blog is the "sister" site, the pioneer woman cooks. Now, I love to read cooking magazines and cookbooks, but honestly I rarely actually try very many of their recipes. At the pioneer woman cooks I have tried many, many, many of her recipes. I like to think of it as Recipes for dummies. Each recipe is accompanied by not one, not two, but 40 or 50 photos depicting every single step in each recipe. You always feel like you could actually cook them. My very favorites have been Marlboro Man Sandwhiches, Pasta primavera, and spicy shrimp.

2. Because I said so -- This is the blog of a stay at home mother of 6 in chicago. She writes well and reminds me of Erma Bombeck. She is funny. She gained a lot of notoriety by selling a pack of pokemon cards on ebay. Click on it and read the seller's description, you'll see why I like her blog. She has been made famous because of the ebay thing. She has a book contract, has been on Good Morning America, and this week NPR. But her wit and humor in the face of trying to raise 6 good kids is alive and well.

Enjoy!