Domestic Challenges

I don’t know about you, but thinking of something to make for dinner every night is one of my biggest domestic challenges as a newlywed. My precious friend Elizabeth has inspired me to be more adventurous and brave in the kitchen. She is a wonderful cook and such a good teacher. From the moment that she taught me what to do with fresh garlic (I had NO idea!), I have felt like just maybe I could learn to be a better cook. It is not that I don’t like to cook, I have just really always seen it as a chore and never put much effort into it when I was single. It was easy to have super simple meals most of the time. When I got married and was suddenly responsible for coming up with an idea for dinner – EVERY DAY – and making sure my dear husband doesn't go hungry, it suddenly became overwhelming. But over the past 10 months (can you believe it??) together Mike and I have definitely found our groove in the kitchen. We’ve gone from driving each other crazy in the kitchen to cooking together in harmony (well, most of the time anyways). I love that making dinner has become a fun way for us to spend time together. I am always on the lookout for new recipes and thought I would share this delicious recipe we tried this week from Real Simple. It is fairly quick and easy – perfect for a work night!

Rigatoni with Grilled Peppers and Onions

Serves 4

2 medium red onions, sliced into ½-inch thick rings
2 large red bell peppers, cut into quarters
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
12 ounces rigatoni
1 bunch spinach, stems trimmed or one 5-ounce package
1 cup grated Parmesan
½ cup basil leaves, thinly sliced

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Heat a grill or grill pan to medium-high.

In a large bowl, toss the onions, bell peppers, oil, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Grill, turning occasionally, until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and cut into bite-size pieces.

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water, drain the pasta, and return the pasta to the pot.

Add the grilled vegetables, spinach, the reserved pasta water, and ¾ cup of the Parmesan to the pasta and toss to combine. Top with the basil and the remaining Parmesan before serving.

We cut the recipe in half – sort of, and used only one red onion and about ¾ the pasta. Skipped the basil all together and we didn’t add the reserved pasta water. I would suggest chopping the onion and bell pepper into large bite size pieces before cooking.

I love finding good recipes, so if you have a quick and easy one you'd like to share, please post it on your blog and leave a link in the comments. I’ll try to post a recipe on a semi-regular basis and hopefully we can all expand our cookbooks.

B-day

Bye, bye smile...Hello braces (again)!

Where Did the Time Go?

Well, clearly I lied about my next post coming soon back in June. Somewhere in the midst of the ups and downs of this summer, I lost my inspiration for blogging or maybe I just ran out of time. I think about blogging nearly everyday, but obviously that hasn't translated into any action. Or maybe my obsession with Facebook has just taken over all my free time.

I hope that we still have a few readers left - I know there are at least a couple of you who have continued to prod me to blog again. I hope the rest of you haven't given up and will keep reading!


P.S. Be sure to check out my sister's fabulous new blog layout!

Coming Soon...

I promise that my post about Seattle is coming soon...work and life have just gotten in the way, but hopefully this will help tide you over until I can finish it.

Erin and I with all the beautiful flowers at Pikes Place Market

A few things I learned about Seattle:

* There are 98 Starbuck's within a 5 mile radius of downtown. And these people don't even really like Starbuck's - they prefer Tully's (another chain) or independent coffee shops.

* Seattle has 230 overcast days each year and 190 completely cloudy with ZERO sunshine days. Four of the overcast days were while I was there. But, the sun did break through several times and Sunday afternoon was beautiful!

* The Space Needle wasn't the original name of the Seattle landmark, but a nickname that stuck after a reporter who was making fun said that the tower looked like a flying saucer.

* The original name of Seattle was Duwomp. Seriously! I'm going to start referring to Erin and Brian as Duwompers. Too bad they don't live in the Seattle suburb of Fremont, then I could call them Fremonsters!

Countdown to Seattle...

I can't believe that my trip to Seattle to see my sister and her husband is almost here! It has been nearly three and a half months since I have seen them and it feels like forever.

I'm looking forward to...

Seeing the house boat from "Sleepless in Seattle"

Going to the space needle

Shopping at Pikes Place Market -
maybe I'll even get a free hug too

But most of all, I can't wait to hug this girl and see her pretty face!

Overheard On Our Evening Walk

Mike to passing man while we are walking: Hi there, is that a maltipoo?

Man: It is - how did you know that?

Mike: I don't know, just a guess...

Man: I hate this dog. I feel so gay walking him.

Perfect End to Memorial Day

Ah...margaritas, queso, creamy jalopeno sauce, and chips! Delicious!

Happy Hot Dog Day!

For months now we've been talking about having a "hot dogs and Pina Colada" party in honor of our new hot dog griller (one of Mike's favorite wedding gifts) and all the Pina Coladas that we drank on the honeymoon. Memorial Day weekend proved to be the perfect time for a last minute get together with friends for a pool party, hot dogs (and burgers) and lots of Pina Coladas.

The awesome cake that Fish and Laura brought to celebrate "Hot Dog Day"

Kitty riding the raft in the pool

Claire and Ron enjoying the sun

Moria and Jeff enjoying the shade

The Girls: Moria, Claire, Alison and Laura

Kitty - "air swimming"

Some of the guys: Ron, Kirk and Mike

Mike in the spa...trying to woo the ladies in

Mike and Kirk...drunken chicken

Laura, Natasha and Claire

Cutter and Kitty...making friends

Cutter and Momma Natty

A Proper Introduction

So I've been listening to my people talk about the password to this account, and thought it was time that I get a proper introduction around here. They are kind of stingy about letting me use the computer, so I had to wait until they were asleep. I noticed that they never seem to mention on here when I do really great stuff, only when I tick momma off. I've been around here longer than she has, but I am actually starting to like her at least a little bit. She has these really soft slippers that my dad gave her for Christmas and she lets me sleep on them, plus I love to snuggle in the pile of dirty clothes and her clothes smell way better than someone elses.

So anyways, back to my introduction. My name is Kitty and I am an eight-year-old black miniature pinscher. I spend most of my time hanging around the apartment and sleeping while they go do this thing they call "work" - whatever that is. I have my own room now and really like it in there. They've even let me do my own decorating. That's a picture of me in my house.

I love to play with my dad and love when he throws my woolly, squeaky bone and lets me chase it. We have lots of games we play and it so fun to run around the apartment. I don't really like baths much, but they make me take one whenever momma says I stink. I try to stay away from the bathroom so dad can't sneak up on me and throw me in the shower. I'm not a picky eater and will eat just about anything. I love when momma cooks because she's definitely messy in the kitchen and always drops yummy food on the floor.

A couple months ago my people got this crazy idea that we should start walking everyday. I didn't like it much at first, but I'm starting to get the hang of it. I get out of the apartment, get to stretch my legs, and meet new friends. And have I mentioned how much I love chasing squirrels? I almost had one the other day. You should have seen it - I was this close! I wonder what they taste like?

Well, that's all for now. But remember when you read posts about me in the future, there are two sides to every story and the dog always gets blamed.

P.S. You should have seen my dad jumping around in the cold shower this morning - and I thought I didn't like baths!

Day 2 of the Cold Showers

Before you jump to conclusions, keep reading. The cold showers were from our busted water heater! We were pleasantly (read: unpleasently) surprised to wake up Thursday morning to NO HOT WATER. Alison skipped the shower and I should have. It was extremely hard to wash my 2000 body parts in the freezing water. Let's just say I focused on the parts that had a tendancy to smell. Luckily for everyone Alison had taken a shower the night before so she wasn't rockin the PigPen just yet. Immediately after leaving the house she called the apartment office and filed a work order to have the water heater fixed. They came out Thursday, "fixed" it, and we thought we were good when we went to bed that night. We woke up Friday morning with ZERO HOT WATER. Alison once again slipped the icy grips of a shower, but I could not! Our hair at the end of the day told the story. Alison was definitely sporting the Soul Glow. I, on the other hand, was looking fine as ever. Supposedly the heater has been fixed, but I'll be convinced when there is hot water for my Saturday shower.

So Disappointed

I've been anxiously waiting for several days until I've had time to watch the movie P.S. I Love You. I rented the movie this weekend while my mom was here, but she had already seen it, so I was saving it for Sunday night while I waited for Mike to get back in town. Anyways, one thing led to another and I never got around to watching it. Last night was full of work, so I came home tonight ready to settle in for a delicious evening with the chick flick!

I am so completely disappointed in this movie. I absolutely loved the book and this was a major letdown. Now before you lecture me about comparing a movie to the book...I must say that I went into this very open minded and knowing that it likely wouldn't match the images in my head while I was reading the book.

BUT...

I had to stop watching the movie only 15 minutes in...everything about the movie was just so WRONG WRONG WRONG! Nothing about it portrayed the characters or even the plot in way that even remotely resembled the essence of the book. I was ready to give up when the movie title credits started after the first scene, but decided to give it a fair chance and kept watching...well, I didn't make it much further. Cue the scene of Gerry's funeral and I was done.

Looks like I am going to have to go back to my policy of never watching the movies of books I have loved - good thing I never managed to watch Bridge to Terabithia!

I Heart Elliot Stabler

I have a confession. I love Law & Order: Special Victims Unit! I don't have many TV shows that I am seriously dedicated to watching, but SVU is one that I will rearrange my schedule for...and yes, I do have to actually adjust our schedule because Mike and I are probably the last people to not own a DVR. I've been reminding Mike for several days that tonight was the season finale and I had to be home at 9 on the dot to watch it. And plus, I think he secretly likes the show too. The season finale was good, although I'm not sure it was the most dramatic episode ever as advertised. Good thing that there is always a rerun of SVU on TV at anytime of day or night - that should get me through the summer.

Happy Mother's Day!

Spring Cleaning

This weekend was my annual Winter to Spring closet transition. It only took 5 hours on Saturday, 3.5 Lifetime movies, 2 snacks, and 1 helpful husband to get this accomplished. I feel so much better now and in the process Mike cleaned out his side of the closet too. We ended up with some great finds for the consignment store and dropped off a car load of stuff at Goodwill on Sunday.

We found some real treasures cleaning out the closet and this one took me back to my college days...

A sampling of the fabulous collection of plaid flannel
shirts I spent my college years wearing

Now before you make fun, you must know that these were actually quite fashionable circa. 1995-99. Pair one of these with high-waisted Gap jeans and stylish Cole Hahn loafers and the look is complete! I was ready to hit the Sub in style.

Mike wondered aloud when in my past I had been a lumberjack. But seriously who didn't love a great plaid shirt back then??

I have to admit that I have a very hard time parting with old clothes and shoes, but it was liberating to get rid of all this stuff!

Bea Arthur's Prom Date

We recently participated in Relay for Life, a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. It is an all night event, yes 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., and basically is a walking relay (or running if you are Natasha). Technically a member of your team should always be walking on the track...and we did pretty good until 4 a.m. when we all fell asleep! Mandie and Jesse were superstars and I'm pretty sure they walked the most laps of anyone on our team...Laura and Natasha were right behind them on laps. The guys...not so much! Well, they did do a lap with "Fish" walking in his footy pajamas. It was a great night with good friends for an important cause!

Our fabulous team t-shirts that Laura designed...
don't ask, we just all thought this would be a funny team name

Our team camp site

"Fish" and Mike sharing some tunes

The girls trying out the tent: Mandie, Laura, Alison and Natasha

Laura and "Fish" showing off the silent auction basket they won...
which just happened to be the one that Mike and I put together!

"Fish" negotiating with the high school "hula girls" for a grass skirt...
Cost: $5 and one box of popcorn

Alison and Natasha taking a break

"Fish" showing off his camo footy pajamas

Natasha's self-portrait...around 3:30 a.m.

Brrr...it was chilly

How cold was it? Well, even Mike and Kirk were cold

911 Call

Operator: 911, what is your emergency?

Alison: Yes, I want to report a young woman who's car is stranded on Central Expressway on the shoulder - she looks pretty panicked!

Operator: Oh, I'm sorry police officers will only respond to cars that are blocking a lane - where did you say her car is?

Alison: Oh, her car is in the left hand lane.

Operator: Well then, we will send someone out right away. Thanks for calling.

Can a purse ever be too big?

This past weekend, my wonderful husband and I did a little bit of shopping. Ok, actually I did almost all of the shopping, but he is such a sweetie and indulged me with two purses AND a new pair of shoes. What a great hubby!

Last week he saw a segment on the morning news on "Now, New, Next: Hot Handbags under $150." There was one purse that he thought I would especially like, so on Saturday we set off in search of it at Zara in the Galleria. The purse was easy to find and is really cute. After parading around the store with it on my shoulder, I decided that I needed to bring it home in order to make a final decision.

It looks like a normal purse

But it is gigantic!
So, dear readers...can a purse ever be too big? Does this look ridiculous?

Yes, I am asking you to comment and let me know what you think. (This is also my sneaky way of finding out if anyone other than our moms and my sister is reading!)

New Hairdo

I've loved having long hair, but all of a sudden it was just too long and started driving me crazy!! You know that feeling when you wake up one day and suddenly you can't wait another minute for a visit to the salon?? Well, I reached that point...and made an appointment to see my fabulous hairstylist Jennifer ASAP!

Before

These "after" photos are especially for you, sis...

After - Not the greatest photo of me

And from the back

A little history here...before the wedding I had a horrible time deciding how to wear my hair...everyone was giving me lots of advice, but all I knew was that I just wanted to look "like me" that day. I made many trips to visit my hairstylist Jennifer for practice hairdos. After each session, I would somehow manage to take photos of my hair by myself - I didn't want to ask Mike for help because I didn't want him to see anything related to the wedding day, but I wanted to email photos to my mom and sister for their opinions. Well, after many rounds of photos, I realized that I needed to see what the hair styles would look like with my strapless dress...I didn't have a tube top handy, so I did the next best thing...I didn't think anything of it until I sent them the photos and their only response was - "ARE YOU NAKED??"

Can I keep her?

Landri and Alison

At the baby shower in Houston, I met this adorable little girl. Landri is 2 1/2 and just about the cutest thing I have ever seen. Her mom and I hit it off right away and had lots to talk about. Landri and I played outside after the shower and she even sang me a few verses of "Deep in the Heart of Texas."


Mike, can I keep her...please??

I mean, she is named for Tom Landry after all!

H-Town

Babies, babies, everywhere! We had a fun trip to Houston last weekend. It was a quick trip, but we had a great time visiting Mike's old haunts and seeing good friends!

The first stop of the trip was a baby shower for Mike's longtime friend Jessica, who is expecting her first bundle of joy in July. Mike's parents also made the trip for the shower and Mike and his dad were happy to make a stop at Fry's Electronics while his mom and I were at the shower. The guys did come by at the end to pick us up and say hi to everyone. We loved being there to celebrate with Jessica and Matt!

Alison, Mike, Matt, and mom-to-be Jessica

This weekend was also our first time to try using Hotwire to book our hotel reservation. We had great luck and scored a room downtown at the Hilton.

View of the new baseball stadium from our room
and the beautiful new park they are building.
On Sunday, we had the chance to stop and visit my good friend from college and her husband. Leah and Adam have two adorable kiddos now and we had so much fun visiting them. Adam cooked burgers and hot dogs on the grill and we had a fabulous lunch - the weather was so nice we were even able to enjoy it on their back patio. Sydney was a little shy at first, but by the end we were like old friends...she was a little skeptical of Mike, but eventually they were friends too! She even put sprinkles on his ice cream cone!

Alison, Leah, and Sydney
We essentially ate our way back to Dallas on Sunday afternoon...after a stop at Starbuck's on our way out of town and a delicious Expresso brownie, we stopped in Corsicana at the new highway location of Collin Street Bakery and sparks flew. World famous for their fruitcakes (and one of my former clients), we discovered that they also make delicious cookies and were remodeling one of their counter areas...I'm not sure, but I don't think cutting metal that throws sparks everywhere is a good idea while customers around. I think the cookies were gone before we hit the Dallas city limits!

Gummy Hunter

So I know we post a lot about our dog, but I had to share this story about something that happened yesterday...

As part of our easter gifts Al and I both received gummy candies. I got gummy octopuses (octopi or octopodes) and Al got gummy cherries. I'd been thinking about my gummy octopi all day long (yeah my work day is sad) so as soon as I got home I went for them. This prompted Al to eat her gummy cherries too. Much to the changrin of poor Kitty we started sharing by throwing pieces back and forth to each other. This turned into an unintentional monkey-in-the-middle session that drove her CRAZY! Then Al lazers a cherry to me only to have it ricochet off my hand and go behind the couch. DOH! I see this as the perfect opportunity to put our little vermin hunter to work. So we pull the couch out from the wall, coaxed her over (didn't take much coaxing) and sent her in. We were going to put the headlamp on her, but the batteries were dead. The gap between the wall and the couch was just wide enough for her to make it to the cherry, although I'm not sure it would have mattered. She was highly motivated and would have clawed her way to it if need be. She quickly scarfed it up and proceeded to back out (which is hilarious in itself, wish I had a vid of that). So happy ending for all involved.

Words Men Use

1) Fine: Literally means that's just fine.

2) Five minutes: Five minutes, but please understand that the clock stops for incomplete passes, time outs, etc.

3) Nothing: Most likely, nothing

4) Go Ahead: Permission granted

5) Loud Sigh: Long efficient breath taken to more adequately oxygenate the blood

6) That's Okay: Perhaps not perfect, but that will do

7) Thanks: Thank you

8) Whatever: I have no preference, but thanks for asking

9) Don't worry about it I got it: I will take care of it and do not require any assistance

Words Women Use

I got this from a friend the other day and just had to laugh because unfortunately this is so true!

1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.

4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't do it!

5) Loud Sigh: This is not actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)

6) That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome. (I want to add in a clause here - This is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' - that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're welcome' ... that will bring on a 'whatever').

8) Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to # 3.

Date Night

By Friday night Mike and I both had a bit of cabin fever after being home all day long, so we decided to brave the weather and venture out. The roads weren't bad, so after stops at Target and Bed, Bath, & Beyond (or Blood, Bath, & Beyond as Mike calls it) we headed to our favorite pizza place - Campania's. Our friends Claire and Ron introduced us to this place awhile back and we just can't get enough of it!

It is true Italian style pizza and is delicious! The only bad thing about Campania's is that the restaurant is a bit small and there isn't much room to stand while waiting for your table. The wait is never too long, but the place always seems to be jam packed with people. There were lots of people waiting when we got there including a big party of six people. A small table opened up and so we were seated before the big group. Once we were seated I had a direct view of the big group waiting. They had stationed themselves directly in the center of the restaurant and were literally standing around or should I say over these people at a table.

The photos don't do the scene justice, but I felt really sorry for the guy sitting at the table. At one point the group standing cracked open their beers (Campania's is BYOB) and were actually toasting directly over the guy's head!

I'm not sure that I would have had the patience that this poor guy did!